Itachi: The early years
by knightchaser
Summary: He was a dream come true for a stagnated clan. But what kind of a future does a savior born with cursed blood have? Especially with Madara, Fugaku, Sarutobi and Danzou pulling the strings. Itachi Uchiha's early life from 4 to 13.
1. Chapter 1 The New Clan Lord

**This is the third rewrite of the first chapter. I updated the prologue and rewrote some of the events.**

**Please review!**

**Things to note: **

**The important Itachi/Sasuke battle (manga chpt 402) ended about the time I finished chapter 30, so some important events that happened when Itachi was four now happen when he is eight – including the battlefield scene.**

**Alas… I got Itachi's birthday wrong. I wrote it as being March, but in reality it is in the summer. **

**I like long stories so this is a long story.**

**I'm going for about 80% accuracy. I'm not psychic and I can't know everything. Also, a few things get changed for dramatic effect, not to mention I have to do a lot of guessing. **

**Madara is in the story as a major character. Read it to find out more XD**

**If the first chapter is too fluffy for you, skip to the second chapter. The first chapter sets up the characters and if you are familiar with them (as you probably are) you'll be okay. I wrote the first chapter since exposition is needed in any story.**

**Updates are on Fridays – put the story in your alert list and you will get an e-mail when the update comes.**

**Itachi is a genius and is a couple years ahead of where he should be for his age group, he is also being pushed by his parents and clan to excel. If he sometimes seems older than his age, well, that is why. However, he isn't a "little adult" either, he lacks experience in years. At least that is how I tried to write it XD**

**And last! Sorry for the long notes. Please enjoy the story! And review! **

**Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Kishimoto.**

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**xx Prologue xx**

Itachi Uchiha stepped out of the cave and into a rainstorm. The 21 year old member of the infamous terrorist organization Akatsuki closed his eyes and lifted his head to the sky so he could feel the rain falling on his face. It pooled around his eyes and cheeks, forming rivulets that ran down his head onto his neck. Kisame Hoshigaki, Itachi's partner-in-crime, remarked that he looked like he was crying and reminded him that he would become ill if he got too wet.

Random memories threaded through Itachi's head until they finally focused on certain events; his indoctrination into the clan at four, his graduation from the Academy at eight, the Chuunin exam, his entrance into ANBU, his recruitment into Akatsuki. He remembered the valley of corpses – dead for as far as the eye could see. His friends… they had died over the years. Some in battle, some by his hand. His mother and father entered his thoughts then. He thought he had hated them at one point in his life, but now the feeling was regret. Not that he had killed them, but at the desperation that had driven his clan to the edge and the same desperation and that had driven him to stop them.

The last memory to wind its way though the young man's mind was of a boy, five years his junior. Sasuke. His little brother was out there, hunting him. And now it was time to allow the hunter catch his prey.

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**Chapter 1 The New Clan Lord**

When Itachi was born to the Clan Chief Fugaku and his wife Mikoto not only did the clan celebrate, but they breathed a collective sigh of relief. They now had an heir should something happen to the chief. Fugaku was not as happy and during his wife's labor he had holed up in a bar drinking. When Mikoto finally saw him he was very drunk. He wouldn't tell his wife the reason at the time, but he did not want an heir.

The next three years he stayed out of his son's life. He took his meals separate and only occasionally spoke to him. Mikoto took care of the boy by herself without complaint. He was a good child, and very intelligent. She rarely felt overwhelmed by her husband's lack of help. And besides, she had many close friends who did help.

Itachi's third year Fugaku started to show a little more interest in his son. The conversations were a few sentences exchanged concerning Itachi's well being and his progress in his studies. He still ate apart from his family and spent no real time with him.

Itachi didn't notice. To him, this is the way it was. He spent all his time with his mother, who had started tutoring him the day he asked her why so many kanji characters in his story books were the same. She told him they were words and pointed several of them out to him. He remembered them and within a week could read his favorite children's books. He cornered his father in the living room one day and pointed to several kanji he recognized in the newspaper he was reading. Fugaku felt pride that day, for the first time, and ordered his wife to set up a round of studies for Itachi. Mikoto had been so happy to hear her husband utter the phrase "our son" that she didn't think to consider arguing the fact that the boy was only three years old.

The clan found out about Itachi's progress (helped along by two bragging parents) and praised their genius heir. Fugaku started to expect progress from his son in his studies and Mikoto assured him of Itachi's academic prowess, hoping the boy didn't burn out. She let Itachi work at his own pace and introduced new things when he was ready. However, the three year old boy still played a lot. Most of the day in fact, he ran races around the house, built odd designs with his blocks, and rough-housed with his older cousins. That was also the year he understood that his family was part of a clan of ninjas. He watched his parents sparring with other members of the clan and tried to imitate them, promising them that he would grow up to be a great a ninja. The words were probably copied from the declarations of his older cousins, or even from TV, but it still made his parents proud.

Itachi's fourth birthday was a day the clan had looked forward to for years. It was the day the clan heir would be formally indoctrinated into the clan and officially become Fugaku's heir. A large party was planned for noon, then a ceremony at the clan's temple that evening.

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Itachi woke up the morning of his fourth birthday and did what he always did – he lay directly in the sun with his eyes closed. The early March sunlight felt good. It was warm, and through his eyelids he could see red. Red was his favorite color. He would lay there for a long time (his mother once timed him at thirty minutes) and think of nothing but the warmth of the sun and "red".

Climbing out of bed he quickly dressed himself, pulling on a pair of dark colored shorts and a blue shirt with the Uchiha fan symbol on the back. The symbol consisted of the outline of a fan with the bottom third colored white while the top was red. Everyone wore that symbol embroidered or appliquéd on their clothing. It was also seen on banners, walls, and several other items owned or displayed by clan members.

Next to Itachi's dresser was a clothes-stand displaying the formal outfit he would wear to that evening's indoctrination ceremony. It consisted of a white yukata and pants. Mikoto had told Itachi not to touch it unless she was with him. It was an old outfit that had great symbolic importance to the clan. He touched it anyway. Nothing happened. Smiling he slipped his feet into his small kitty slippers and ran down the hall to the bathroom to wash up.

Breakfast that morning was a surprise. When Itachi entered the kitchen his father was already sitting at the table. The young boy couldn't remember ever seeing his father in the kitchen. Mikoto saw Itachi's surprise and bowed a couple inches to remind him to show his father respect. Itachi saw and quickly bowed forward. "Good morning father and mother." His parents were strict about manners and he would sometimes get confused about when he should bow or what he should say. Mikoto had, over time, worked out several ways of helping her son by using body language.

Fugaku smiled at his son and wished him a good morning as well, then watched as the boy positioned himself on a cushion. Mikoto placed the rice, fish and toast on the table. Itachi stood on his knees halfway through the meal to make it easier to reach the table. He may have been a genius and a couple years ahead of his age in brains, but his body was small. He did have a booster seat, but it was awkward to get in and out of so he didn't like to use it.

His mother talked through the meal, while his father watched him. He never really said much. Of course, he remembered Kisa (the mother of his best friend and cousin Shisui) saying he really didn't have a chance since Mikoto talked too much. He didn't understand what that meant. If his mother said what needed to be said, then why should he or his father say it again? Repetition didn't serve any purpose. Oh well. Adults were strange sometimes.

"Is Obito going to be there?" Itachi asked his mother.

"Yes, he is. However, he has to leave in the morning so don't wear him out too much." She smiled at him, knowing how rambunctious Obito could get when playing with his two young cousins, Itachi and Shisui. They were the only Uchiha children in Konoha so it was understandable. Obito had been an only child for so many years that having two little playmates – even ones who where half his age – was very good for the 13 year old boy. It was put forth when he was young that he may have to take the place as the Uchiha heir if Fugaku did not have any children and Obito did not handle the news well; even though he was only 6 at the time. Shisui was too far on the clan's side branch to be considered. The Elders recognized the problem and finally arranged a marriage between Fugaku and Mikoto, with instructions that a child would be born within a year. Mikoto did not understand why Fugaku resisted marriage, but she knew that he did love his family, and now, looking at him watching Itachi she was sure it was the right thing and that the clan's future was very bright.

Itachi finished his breakfast and placed his chopsticks on their holder next to his plate. He then sat still and bowed his head slightly to look at his empty plate.

"Today my son becomes my heir, and the clan's future is assured." Fugaku's words were solemn and serious. For the first time in his life Itachi had butterflies in his stomach, but he sat up straight and looked his father directly in the eye so he wouldn't know he was nervous. Fugaku continued to watch him and recognized his son's bravado. It was cute and brave at the same time. Well, his life was about to change, a little bit of nerves was to be expected. After all, Itachi was a very bright and perceptive child. "Tonight at the ceremony you will swear an oath that will bind you to the clan for the rest of your life. Such a responsibility is not to be taken lightly. From this point on you and I will spend more time together as I train you to be an Uchiha ninja, and to take over leadership when I resign or die."

"Yes father. I will be a great ninja and train hard!" Itachi suddenly smiled as dreams of ninja grandeur (helped by endless hours of ninja anime) flickered through his mind. Fugaku smiled at him, guessing correctly what was going on in Itachi's head. Well, he had been a boy once too.

"If you two are finished eating why don't you go into the living room and watch TV or something until the guests arrive. I've got a lot to do in here. Fugaku, please don't go too far, I need you to help set up the extra tables outside." Mikoto started removing the dishes from the table as Fugaku and Itachi got up and left.

Itachi went back to his room. He usually studied in the morning with his mother, but today's lesson was cancelled in preparation for the celebration. Entering his room he looked around. Mikoto had cleaned it top to bottom the day before. Not that Itachi was a messy child. He tended to put his stuff away most of the time, but still, things did get out of hand eventually especially with his ninja toys and action figures.

Itachi's favorite TV show was a children's themed anime called "Ninja Chronicles" about a ninja genin who lived in a world without ninja villages. His friends formed a team that wandered the land using their strengths to earn money, gain power to defeat their arch enemy, and protect the civilians from oppression. Itachi had a couple posters from the show, as well as action figures, toy weapons, comic books and a game. He would spend hours playing ninja with Shisui. The missions were extraordinarily complex, given his age, but his near perfect memory was basically just mimicking what he saw on TV. His parents saw it as good practice and encouraged his play. He did have a few teddy bears and stuffed cats though, as well.

Speaking of cats, there were three on his bed when he stepped in the room. The sun was still shining on it and they were obviously enjoying themselves. They were all white with red patches and one had no tail. He walked over and stroked their fur. Then he grabbed one of his action figures and suddenly he was fighting for his life against three sleepy giant Neko monsters that were threatening the villagers hiding in the trash can. The cats, echoing a tradition born of generations lived with over-zealous toddlers, ignored him.

"Don't you guys want to play?" He asked the biggest one.

"No. It's nap time. Go to sleep." The cat answered him with a stern voice.

"Come on, it's my birthday! Nap time is later, but since I'm four now I don't have to take naps." Itachi liked to play ninja with the ninja cats because they had actually been on missions and could sometimes be talked into telling some great stories.

"You are still a kitten, and I'm sure Mikoto will continue to make you take naps. Why don't you go play outside?" The cat didn't even bother opening his eyes this time.

"Okay. Shisui and Obito will probably be here soon anyway." Itachi was a little dejected, but the thought of spending all day with Shisui and Obito cheered him up quickly. He ran out of his room and onto the porch to wait for his cousins. He stood there for a minute and when they didn't come he started to run back and forth on the porch, trying to keep his footfalls as quiet as possible. The porch ran completely around the large main clan house, so it was good exercise for him, even though it never really tired him out (much to his mothers chagrin). The game was to run 10 laps without making a sound. His mother told him it was chakra control training. Kisa told him the noise gave his mother a headache, but she was laughing when she said it so he was _almost_ sure she was teasing him.

Itachi stopped running after about six laps and watched his father directing several people who were putting up tables. There were two ox carts nearby with the words "Party Rental" displayed prominently. There were several men and women wearing jumpsuits with "Konoha Party Rental" stenciled on the back. Fugaku had a piece of paper and was holding it while a couple of the men used a tape measure to determine where to put the tables. Two women were unloading folding chairs from one of the carts and opening them up. A short time later the tables formed a three sided square facing the lake. Where the fourth side would be was actually a much smaller table. Itachi wondered if someone was going to sit there or if that was where the cake would go. He hoped it was cake.

Suddenly Itachi found himself hanging upside down by his ankles and someone was tickling his tummy. He started laughing as he squirmed around to see Obito holding him and Shisui tickling him. He heard more laughter and he turned his head to see some of the clansmen had arrived and were watching them. "Caught yourself a pretty small fish there, Obito, better throw it back!" One of them yelled.

"Nah – I feel like having an appetizer before lunch." Obito yelled back as he set Itachi back on his feet. Itachi looked up at Obito with a big smile.

"I haven't seen you in forever. I'm glad you came. Did Shisui tell you he's going to the academy now?" Itachi was very excited about Shisui going to the ninja academy – he was six years old after all.

"He hasn't stopped talking about it. Ha ha ha." He laughed and roughed up Shisui's hair.

"I'm the best in my class! I'll be graduating in no time – just you wait!" Shisui loved to brag about himself, even if he had to exaggerate. No one minded though. In a lot of ways he was like Obito. A person who loved to laugh, play jokes, tease, and wasn't always as serious as he should be. Itachi, like his father, was more reserved, and tended to be serious a little too much. Something Shisui was now old enough to point out to him, repeatedly, even if all he got in return was a blank stare from a confused Itachi.

"Obito," Mikoto said as she walked up to the boys "would you take Itachi and Shisui inside while the caterers set up?" She leaned over and whispered in his ear "Don't let Itachi see until it's ready. I want it to be a surprise."

"Yes Mikoto! I will execute this mission with my life and watch over the clan's new lord as if the world depended on it!" He saluted her and grabbed each boy around the middle and hoisted them under his arms as he walked back into the house. She giggled a little at this. Obito was such a little comedian at times. No wonder Itachi and Shisui looked up to him so much. She walked down the stairs and on to the gate to check on the deliveries. She wanted the tables set up with tablecloths before the caterers arrived. They were specific about their requirements and she didn't want them to be inconvenienced.

Mikoto stood at the edge of the porch and watched as Fugaku spoke with some of the other clan members. Muscular build, medium height, with black, stern eyes and medium-toned skin he wasn't really what you would call handsome. His black hair was shoulder length and was tied at the nape of his neck. He usually held his face in a frown – not so much to look disgruntled as to look serious. He was one of the most powerful ninja in the clan and the captain of the Konoha police force. A man that commanded power and expected obedience, he was a focused individual who held clan loyalties above all else.

However, for some reason he did not want to have children. He had told her that before they got married, but because he was the eldest and heir to the clan, he had no choice. The clan celebrated when Itachi was born, and Fugaku mourned. She did not understand his behavior and he refused to explain himself. That was the first and only time she ever saw him drunk.

Mikoto, at twenty-six, was five years younger than Fugaku. She was also a couple inches shorter, with a slighter build. Mikoto had very little contact with him when she was growing up, but they had gone on some missions together after she became a chuunin. She found him to be very professional and the missions had gone smoothly and were, for the most part, enjoyable.

A sound near the ox carts startled Mikoto out of her thoughts. She turned around and saw a third ox cart pulling in. The caterers had arrived. Obito and Shisui's mothers (Kagura and Kisa) came out of the house and walked with her to greet them. Together they answered the caterer's questions, and watched as they set everything up. When they were done, the caterers put on aprons so they could be waiters.

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When Obito brought the two boys inside the house he saw the eight elders sitting in the living room talking. He put the boys down on their feet and greeted them with a formal bow. Itachi and Shisui copied him. "So how are you doing today young Itachi?" The oldest of the elders asked.

"I am well. And how are you elder?" Itachi bowed again as he spoke.

"I've been better. Old age is getting to me – I turned 98 years old recently and I feel every year of that! Of that I am proud!" He spoke in a clear, booming voice even though he looked frail and could only walk with the aid of two canes.

"Wow!" Itachi and Shisui said at the same time. Obito already knew this and just smiled. He knew what it cost the old man to be here when he should be home in bed. Itachi was that important to the clan. His smile faded at that thought as he looked at the elders smiling faces.

"If you'll excuse us, Mikoto wanted me to entertain the boys while she finishes the setup outside." Obito said seriously as he bowed. He felt very self-conscious around them, and wanted to get away. He still remembered being called in front of them when he was six years old and being told that if Fugaku did not have children he would be the clan's heir. For some reason that had scared him. Well, he wasn't the bravest shinobi anyway. That was probably it. But still, he now feared for Itachi and his future as the clan leader. He didn't know why he felt sorry for the boy. Itachi was a smart kid, and much more serious than he would ever be. He'd probably take to the role like a second skin.

"Don't you like the elders, Obito?" Itachi asked, looking up at Obito as he walked down the hall.

"Oh sure I like them. They're great! Wow, 98 years old, we should hope to live that long, huh?" Obito answered a little too quick. Itachi frowned. He could tell there was something wrong with his cousin.

"Yeah! I want to be 98 years old." Shisui answered enthusiastically. "How about you Itachi?"

"He didn't look very well." Itachi paused in thought "I wonder if he really is happy about being 98." Obito looked at Itachi in shock. How had a four year old boy been able to pick that up? Shisui, who was six, hadn't picked anything up at all. The truth was that the elder was very sick and had been for the last ten years. He was unhappy, suffered from depression and was lonely because his friends and immediate family had been dead for twenty or more years. Obito's mother was a nurse and took care of him and visited him everyday so Obito knew these things. But Itachi picked it up after talking to him for a couple minutes. This boy really was amazing.

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Ninety minutes later the caterer's had finished setting up, the presents were properly arranged, all the guests had arrived and been seated and it was time for the birthday boy to make his grand entrance. Mikoto walked into the house and headed to Itachi's bedroom. When she got there the door was open and Itachi and Shisui were playing with ninja action figures while Obito lay on the floor with a cat on his stomach looking out of the window. The boys were similar in appearance, thin build, black hair, and black eyes. They looked more like brothers. Well, Obito was tall for an Uchiha. In fact, at 13 he was already taller than his mother. When he hit his growth spurt in the next couple years she was sure he would be taller than his father, and exceed 6 feet tall when he was 20. That was a long way off though. She smiled and called Itachi over to her.

"It's time to go. Obito and Shisui, you can go on ahead. Today the three of you will be allowed to sit together, since the birthday is considered an informal occasion despite all the people who came." Usually the main branch of the family sat at one table, and everyone else sat elsewhere. That usually meant that Itachi got to sit next to Obito, but it left Shisui out and she knew that Itachi didn't like that. Shisui didn't like it either, but she knew he would have to accept his position and get used to it. As would Itachi. 'Such heavy thoughts', she said to herself.

Fugaku walked into Itachi's room shortly after the older boys left. Mikoto was brushing Itachi's shoulder length hair. She gathered it at the base of his neck and put a leather tie in it. She then checked his clothes for dirt.

"Is he ready now?" Fugaku asked, a little impatiently. He knew Mikoto was nervous and stalling. He smiled at her when she looked at him with a frown.

"Yes. I just… Well, let's go have some cake Itachi." She took his hand and followed Fugaku to the door leading out to the party area. They stopped and put on their outdoor shoes, carefully putting Itachi's kitty slippers on a shelf. They were small and easy to misplace if left on the floor.

The three walked to the party area next to the lake. Fugaku walked in front, Itachi behind him and to the right and Mikoto directly behind Itachi. Everyone stopped talking and started clapping and yelling their congratulations. The loudest was Obito, of course. Fugaku took it in stride, Mikoto blushed (much to her surprise) and Itachi got butterflies for the second time that day. He wanted to stop and take Mikoto's hand, but he knew his father would not approve so he gulped loudly and kept walking. Suddenly Itachi was lifted in the air. Fugaku was holding him in the air under his arms. "Wave to everyone, Itachi." He told him. Itachi waved both arms in the air and yelled "Hi everyone. Thank-you for coming." Fugaku carried him over to the table where Obito and Shisui were already sitting and put him down in his chair after Shisui pulled it out.

The presents were opened first. He received books, puzzles (one from the Third Hokage – who didn't come – looked extremely difficult and Itachi couldn't wait to solve it), clothes, coloring books and toys. However the best presents were a wall hanging from the elder council of the Uchiha fan symbol, a soccer ball from Obito, and from his parents his very first child-sized ninja sword, kunai and throwing stars.

When he opened the weapon's kit he stared at it, speechless. It was real. Stroking the metal of the blade his eyes widened. It wasn't plastic or wood. He was going to be a ninja.

"Do you like it?" His mother said with a grin. He partially came to his senses and sort of remembered where he was.

"Yes." He said in a small voice. Then much louder "Just you wait father and mother! I'll be the best ninja! I'll work hard everyday!" Everyone laughed and clapped their hands at this, and Obito and Shisui patted him on the back. They felt the same way when they received their first weapon set when they were four.

"Just see that you do, son." Fugaku said. He smiled but he closed his eyes as he said it and bowed his head. He silently prayed for his son's well-being. Several people noticed this unusual display of emotion from their clan leader. Itachi, however, missed it. He was stroking the metal on the sword in awe.

The cake was served then, followed by lunch, then more cake (at least for the boys, though some of the other guests were willing to show their sweet tooth's and try for seconds as well).

Everyone was talking and the background noise was pleasant. Obito regaled the two boys with tales about some of his missions, Shisui talked about his academy classes and Itachi asked lots of questions. Eventually Mikoto was jabbed in the arm by Obito's mother Kagura. She pointed at the boy's table. All three of them were face down, fast asleep. Shisui's mother looked over to see what was going on and stifled a laugh. Her son was drooling.

"I guess we could take them inside." Mikoto said softly.

"Nah, just leave 'em. They're kids, they'll sleep anywhere." Kagura said laughing.

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"Let's get dressed, Itachi." Mikoto said cheerfully. It was now late afternoon, almost evening. She had already dressed herself in a semi-formal kimono and it seemed to put Itachi off a little bit. He wasn't used to seeing his mother dressed up and he looked at her with anxious eyes. "Are you okay?" She asked with a frown as she knelt down in front of him.

"Yes mother. I just don't want to mess up." He dropped his gaze to look at the floor and his eyes were half closed. It made his face look like it had two diagonal lines running from the inside of his eyes down to the corners of his mouth. The lines were more pronounced the older he got, and Mikoto thought it made him more like his father. It was a very serious look, but also sad.

"It's okay Itachi. You memorized the speech so you won't mess up. If you get nervous, just remember that I am there with you. Now take your shirt and pants off so we can put your formal robes on." She smiled at him and she stood up and started to remove the pants from the clothes stand. "I'm going to have to help you put this one, since you've never done it before, so no complaints."

"Huh? Oh, okay." The boy was preoccupied and didn't complain as his mother helped him dress. He usually preferred to dress himself. The white pants stopped about four inches above his ankles and were fastened with a tie around his waist. White fabric strips were used to wrap the bottom of the pant legs and cover the skin down to his ankles. His new weapons holster was tied to his right leg and his kunai and throwing stars were placed securely in the holster. The white robe, called a _yukata_, had long sleeves and was just log enough to reach his hips. It was held in place with a long white strip of fabric that was wound around his waist several times then tied off. At the top of the yukata, two sets of ties closed the robe. The tie ends had large pom-poms on them. His mother tied them loosely so that they were joined, but hung down over his chest.

"Mother?" Itachi asked meekly.

"Yes, Itachi?" She answered and she removed the tie from his hair so she could brush it.

"I have to go potty." She covered her face with her hands and groaned.

'Why didn't I make him go before I started dressing him?' She moaned to herself. "Okay dear, I'm sorry, I should have brought it up before I dressed you. Let's get that taken care of now."

At 5pm the three Uchihas were in the living room. Itachi was now completely clothed in white and even had a white tie to hold his hair. Fugaku was wearing the exact same thing except in black. He also had the Uchiha fan symbol on his back. Mikoto was in a formal black kimono, also with a fan symbol on the back.

"I'll carry Itachi so he doesn't get dirty." Fugaku said.

"I want to walk father!" Itachi complained.

"No. The clothes you are wearing have been handed down through several generations and are very precious. We can't risk anything happening to them. One day, your son will also wear what you have on now." Fugaku explained in a steady voice.

"So you wore this same outfit once?" Itachi was in awe.

"Yes I did. Except my father was already dead so my cousin carried me to the ceremony." Fugaku remembered he had also complained about being carried and smiled slightly.

"Make sure you don't walk to fast, I can't move too well in this outfit." Mikoto complained.

"Weren't kunoichi trained to move in all kinds of different clothes?" Fugaku stated.

"Guilty!" Mikoto responded laughing. "I hate dressing up. I always wear pants on my missions and dresses around the house."

"Much more practical. No wonder I married you."

"You married me because you were told to." She smirked at him affectionately.

"Whatever. Same thing." He picked up Itachi. "You got his shoes? Let's go then."

Mikoto held Itachi's shoes by the straps and she followed her husband and son out of the house. Because it was a formal occasion she would have to walk behind them, but she could see Itachi and watch him. As they left the main house and entered the street the side branch members were gathered on both sides of the street to see their new future clan leader. As they walked by the men and women knelt down on their knees and touched their heads to the ground, then sat up and prayed for his good will. Itachi's butterflies were turning into birds. Mikoto kept her eyes on him. It would be inappropriate for her to say anything to him in front of the side branch during a formal occasion. The clan was very strict about showing weakness. She hoped her eyes were enough to give him courage, but she noticed he had _that_ expression again. He looked down at the ground with his eyes half closed, deep in thought.

The temple was a modest Buddhist temple situated at the far end of the street from the Uchiha clan compound's main entrance. The small garden in front was well tended and had been watered to make it stand out for the occasion. As they stepped on the porch Mikoto and Fugaku slipped their street shoes off and put on their formal shoes. Itachi was set down on the ground and his mother put his shoes on his feet. He continued to stare at the ground.

"Itachi." She whispered "Remember, when this is over Obito and Shisui are going to take you to the field to play soccer." She hoped that would cheer him up, but he didn't move or even acknowledge that she said anything. Now she was worried. She hadn't thought twice about the ceremony until now. It was just the main branch and elders. All Itachi had to do was swear an oath to protect the clan and follow the words of the ancestors. She had to swear a similar oath when she married Fugaku to protect her child, the heir to the clan. She took it seriously, but as a mother, it was nothing she wouldn't do anyway so she hadn't been nervous. She would protect her son with her life, if need be. It was a fact, the oath was just a formality.

"Lord Itachi." Fugaku addressed his son by his title. Itachi immediately looked up at him and gave him his full attention. "Come with me." He walked to the side of the room instead of the altar at the front. He bent down and moved a tatami mat out of the way. He then pulled on a ring attached to the floor and a secret door opened. Itachi looked and saw that a dark stairway lead down into the ground. "I'm going to carry you down the stairs so you don't fall." He looked back at Mikoto and saw that she had taken the arm of one of the elders who had offered to help her down the stairs. Obito then came forward with a torch and descended the stairs first to light the lanterns and torches. Fugaku picked up Itachi and descended the stairs. Mikoto and the elder followed.

At the bottom of the stairs was a medium sized room with an altar at one end. Itachi looked at the symbols drawn on the walls, but to him they were just shapes. He was so nervous now that he didn't care what they were. He heard a noise and looked back into the room and saw that the 98-year-old elder had been carried down the stairs on another mans back and was now being placed carefully in a chair with the help of two other men.

One of the elders, Kentaro, who was also the head of the elder council and third in line to the clan head – after Itachi and Fugaku, stepped up to the altar and motioned for everyone to kneel down. They all sat on their legs in exact rows with Itachi, Fugaku and Mikoto in front. Itachi looked at the gathering and saw that most of them were now looking at him with sharingan eyes. The clans Kekkei Genkai (or bloodline limit) was an ability that turned the eye's iris from black to red, with a triad of black commas (called _tomoes_) circling the pupil. Not everyone had the ability and since it usually didn't show up until puberty, Itachi did not yet know if he did. Obito had not activated his sharingan ability yet, but he was 13 now and it was expected (or at least hoped) that soon he would. The elder said a prayer and everyone prayed with him. He then motioned for Itachi to stand up.

"Itachi, state your oath and intentions, as passed down from the time of our clan's ancestors." The elder spoke in a clear and authoritative voice, while he turned Itachi until he was facing the altar with his back to the clan.

Itachi looked up and saw a plaque on the wall. He couldn't read it though, his mind didn't seem to want to work. He looked at the elder again, who put on a stern look at nodded his head once. Itachi understood that as a warning then opened his mouth and spoke in clear and loud void, just as he had practiced with his mother.

"I, Lord Itachi Uchiha, swear to uphold the laws and traditions of the Uchiha clan. I will protect my clan and its secrets with my life. I will accept my responsibilities and never waver in my faith. I will follow the destiny set forth for the clan and ensure its ultimate conclusion. I will reward the clan when it follows the true path, and punish the clan when it strays. Should I fail my life shall be forfeit." Itachi put his hands together in a prayer and bowed to the altar. The priest then picked up a black robe that had been folded flat on the altar and opened it. He held it out and showed everyone the fan symbol on the back of the small formal robe.

"Itachi, you are now given the appointment of heir to the lord of the Uchiha clan. This responsibility is taken seriously. Know that your grandfather was killed for failing to uphold the oath." The elder looked down at Itachi as the boy inhaled sharply. He didn't know. 'I can't believe Fugaku-sama didn't tell him, even if he is only four.' Kentaro thought to himself.

"Lord Itachi, you are presented with the official ceremonial robe of a full member of the Uchiha clan's main branch." He walked over and helped the boy put it on, then tied it for him. When he finished he turned the boy around to face the gathering. Everyone except his parents kow-towed. The oldest member put his hands together and bent his body forward a little ways without leaving his chair. When they sat back up the elder lifted his hands, palms up, indicating that everyone could stand again. They all stood up and started talking, walking up to Itachi to congratulate him on his new future, and congratulate Fugaku and Mikoto for having such a fine son.

"Are you ready to go now?" Mikoto looked down at Itachi. He had gone back to staring at the ground again. About 30 minutes had passed and the birds in his stomach were threatening to turn into – well, something bigger than a bird.

"Just a minute." He answered, and walked over to the elder in the chair. "What's your name?" He asked politely.

"My name? Why would a youngster be interested in the name of an old relic like me?" He laughed good naturedly.

"I don't know. I just… I just feel like I should know." Itachi was very serious and looked the man directly in the eye. The old man was taken aback by such an intense look in so young a boy. He directed his gaze at the boy, sharingan looking deep into the boys' eyes for several minutes. Itachi didn't move a single muscle and returned the gaze.

"So. You are the one. I have not seen eyes like yours since I was a youth. The clan is assured a bright future on its assigned path and you will take it there. I had held on all these years hoping to see someone once again with those eyes. I despaired that you would never come. But here you are, standing right in front of me." The room had gone deathly silent. The eyes Itachi was being compared to… Could it be true?

He took the boys chin in his hand and held him in place. Tipping his own head forward the old man's hair slid forward, hiding his eyes. Itachi could still see them though. The sharingan faded into something the boy had never seen before. Instead of three tomoe there was a three-bladed pinwheel design. The old man's gaze was very intense and Itachi's head felt funny. A fuzziness that made the boy want to pull away and rub his eyes. The elder saw determination, intelligence, maturity, and…

'Yes, perfect.' He said to himself. This boy was capable of anything. Anything at all.

"Lord Itachi, my name is not important. It is a word written on a tombstone then unwritten by time. Your only concern is the future." He released the boy's chin and looked at the gathering. He raised his voice and in an authoritative voice, a little deeper than the way he had spoken earlier gave the clan an order. "You will support this boy and teach him everything. Nothing is to be left out. He is the prodigy and will be the one to bring forth the will of our ancestors. Failure is unacceptable."

Fugaku felt like his stomach just fell out of his body, but he did not show any emotion on his face. Did the elder just compare his son to _that_ man? Was he truly that powerful? He remembered that _he_ was also a prodigy who excelled at an early age in combat and strategy. However, did he really want his son to take after _him_? The elder was from a different time, he was young when Konoha was founded and in many ways his beliefs and actions still reflected the beliefs of his youth. It caused friction sometimes between himself and the elder, but still… Fugaku felt pride. His son. His Itachi was a great Uchiha. He would train him himself and nothing less than perfection would be tolerated.

Itachi no longer felt any butterflies in his stomach, or birds, or anything else. He felt, truth be told, empty. Like something had just been taken away from him. But what? The feeling passed after a minute though, and he felt normal again. Who was this man? He would ask someone else later. Perhaps Obito knew. Obito… Soccer!

"Mother, can we leave now? I want to play soccer with Obito and Shisui." Itachi walked over to his mother and took her hand and looked up at her with a big smile.

The old man laughed, as did everyone else. Itachi was destined to be a great person, but as a four-year-old boy he had the attention span of, well, a four-year-old boy.

"Yes, it's time to leave now." Fugaku said as he picked his son up again and carried him up the stairs. Obito helped Mikoto up the stairs and offered to walk home with them.

In the secret chamber, the men who carried the old man down the stairs walked over to him. The chamber had emptied out and the only sound was the lingering conversations of the clansmen in the temple above. They reached out to touch the old man, but he was dead. He sat in his chair with his chin on his chest and a smile on his face. They couldn't help but feel that this was a bad omen of some kind.

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Within an hour Itachi was back in his play clothes and running around a muddy field next to the lake playing soccer with Shisui and Obito. The sun had already set (it was still early March after all) but the area was lit by street lights. They weren't really playing by any rules, they were just kicking the ball around. Obito was arranging it so that the two boys kept taking the ball away from him. Itachi even managed to trip him a couple times.

"Hey! Obito!" A young female voice was heard from a short distance. They stopped running around and turned to face the sound. A girl about the same age as Obito, with brown hair and thick red painted lines on either side of her face was standing at the edge of the field, obviously not wanting to get muddy.

"Rin! How are you? Sorry about the mud. What do you want?" Obito's face had turned red. Itachi looked at him curiously. Shisui caught his attention by holding his hand up with his pinky extended. Obito slapped his hand away. Itachi had no idea what was happening but Shisui suddenly started laughing hysterically.

"Sensei wanted me to tell you that we are leaving at 7am tomorrow morning, so don't be late! Is that the birthday boy?" She looked at Itachi who was watching Shisui.

"Yes, he's the clan heir, and four years old today." Obito said proudly, turning Itachi around to face Rin.

"He's so adorable! I'd give him a hug if he wasn't covered in mud. Well, when we get back from the mission you'll have to properly introduce us. See you tomorrow. Remember, 7am!" She ran off.

"Hmmm. You trying to take my girl Itachi?" Obito said pretending to be stern.

Itachi's eye's opened wide "No! I wouldn't do that!" But Obito was laughing and Shisui had fallen to the ground.

"Okay, what's going on, and don't say 'I'll tell you when you get older'." Itachi put his hands on his hips for emphasis.

"The pinky means 'girlfriend'." Shisui finally managed to answer. "We do that at school to tease the other guys when they talk to a girl."

"Oh." Itachi was impressed with the knowledge that Shisui learned at the academy. Obito completely lost it when Itachi turned serious. He was laying flat on the ground laughing his head off. Itachi and Shisui then looked at each other, then each grabbed one of Obito's feet and proceeded to drag him to the lake.

"Wait, wait, where are you taking me?" He managed to sputter out.

"Time for a bath Obito!" Shisui said. "You need to look nice for your girlfriend tomorrow."

"Wait, the lake is cold!" He sat up and stopped the two boys. They were laughing at him now.

"Time to come in now!" Itachi's mother yelled at them from the edge of the field then turned around and walked back to the house.

Itachi ran over to the soccer ball and picked it up, then the three boys walked back to the house. When they arrived Mikoto was standing on the porch with a camera. Before the boys could say anything she had taken several pictures. They were covered head to toe in mud. Kisa then turned on the garden hose and handed it to Obito.

"You'll have to take rinse yourselves down before coming in. We have some nice warm towels here when you finish. If you hurry you won't get too cold." Obito rinsed off Itachi first, then Shisui, then himself. It was cold, but the younger boys were immediately wrapped in the towels and warmed up quickly. Obito used a towel to wipe the water off his face and opted to go home instead of staying.

"I have to leave on my mission a little earlier it turns out, so I need to get to bed. Thank-you for inviting me to the party, and I am eternally grateful for you hospitality. Lord Itachi Uchiha," Obito smiled when Itachi jumped at the formal title "happy birthday. Best wishes for the future."

"How long will your mission be?" Itachi asked.

"Can't say, we are at war after all. Actually, I haven't even been told what we will be doing. Security, you know. See you all later!" He waved as he ran off. Itachi watched his cousin run down the street. The war was giving Obito and other members of the clan a lot of work. Itachi hoped Obito would be back soon with more stories.

The two boys were guided to the bathroom where they were scrubbed down with soap and warm water. Kisa was wondering if she should take bets on how long the boy would last the next day in school before falling asleep in class. He was already asleep on her shoulder. Her husband, Toshiro, came out of the living room where he had been talking to Fugaku and they went home after thanking the head family for their hospitality and wishing Itachi a long and prosperous life.

Itachi was finally in his pajamas. It had been a long day. It felt like it had been several days. The ninja cats were asleep on his bed again. He walked to his window and looked outside. The moon was full and ground was lit with moonlight. The big, white, cold moon. He closed his eyes and stared at it. He could see red. Just like when he looked at the sun. But there was no warmth.

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**Let me know what you think by reviewing. Itachi will reward you by inviting you to play soccer.**

**In the next chapter, the war comes to Konoha in a way Itachi never expected, and Fugaku begins training his son. Put it in your Story Alert so you won't miss the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2 The War

**Chapter 2 is much darker and will begin to set the tone for the rest of the story. There will also be an important revelation about the personalities of Itachi and his father. Up until now, he has had very little contact with his father so he really never knew anything about him. That's about to change.**

**Tissue alert – if you kept up with the anime, then you can probably guess what is going to happen in this chapter. **

**Please review if you can.**

**Updated to correct spelling and grammar. Also, some of the sentences were re-written to improve flow. No events were changed.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 2 – The War**

Itachi was very excited. That evening, when his father returned home from work training would finally begin. He was going to become a ninja. Adjusting his shuriken holster he smiled up at his mother who had just entered his bedroom.

"All ready for breakfast, I see. Itachi, you don't need to wear that until later." She smiled as she pointed to the holster.

"Ninja are always prepared! I have to wear it now." He tried to speak in a serious voice, but he was too happy and it came out cheerful instead.

Mikoto suppressed the urge to laugh, "You're right, Itachi. You'll be a great ninja with that attitude. Now let's go eat."

After breakfast Itachi studied multiplication tables with his mother. He couldn't concentrate though and kept fidgeting and looking out the window. She finally gave up and told him to run around the house using his chakra to mask his footfalls.

Itachi was still running his laps when he heard Shisui run up onto the porch behind him, "Hi Itachi! They cancelled classes this week so we came over for lunch." His mother Kisa and Obito's mother Kagura were laughing as they walked up the short flight of stairs. They greeted Mikoto as she walked out of the house.

"Lunch is almost ready. I'm really glad you could come. Itachi's so excited about this evening that he's climbing the walls." Mikoto lead everyone into the entryway so they could remove their shoes and put on guest slippers. "So… why was the school closed?"

"The mission Obito went on is apparently a major offensive and most of the teachers were called back to active duty. There aren't enough people left at the school to do more than baby-sit so they just decided to call off classes until everyone returns." Kisa answered.

"I went to the hospital this morning to check in and a lot of the medic nins were also called back into active duty so I was told to report for a full shift tonight to help minimize the shortage." Kagura was worried and quieter than her usual boisterous self.

Mikoto and Kisa knew she worried about Obito. He wasn't the bravest of ninjas and probably would have been happier in some other occupation. But as an Uchiha, and a member of the main branch his future was written in stone the moment he was conceived.

Obito would be a ninja no matter what.

The three women had also been ninjas for several years. Mikoto and Kisa had retired when they married, but Kagura had continued (part time) until Obito was eight. As a medic nin her skills were called upon and a full retirement was not possible. She worked as a private nurse now (claiming the hours and responsibilities were less) but due to the war she still had to check in with the hospital everyday in case something came up.

"Well, let's have some lunch and tea, then relax for a while." Mikoto knew that relaxing would not really be possible, but perhaps they could pretend. "If you need some more help at the hospital, I would be glad to come. I only have basic medic training, but I might be useful."

"Thanks for the offer. You and Kisa are both on the call list to help out with minor jobs. I don't think we'll have to pull from that list until the ninja return though. I'm not sure when that will be." Kagura smiled and sat down at the kitchen table. It had already been set with plates and chopsticks. Mikoto dumped the stir-fry into a large bowl and carried it to the table. She sat down at the table next to rice cooker and began to fill small bowls with rice and Kisa put stir-fry on everyone's plates while Kagura filled cups with tea from the large thermos sitting on the floor next to her. Soon everyone was eating and enjoying the afternoon.

Shisui had been quiet while their mothers had talked to Kagura about the war. He understood what they were talking about, and wanted to hear as much as he could about what was going on. At the academy they were being taught defensive maneuvers to protect themselves in case the village was attacked.

Once a week they had a drill in which those methods were tested. A group of the teachers would dress up as foreign ninjas (each week it was a different country) and storm the classroom. The students would have to find their way out of the school and to the gymnasium in another building where a secret entrance led to an underground tunnel. Anyone who cried or showed too much fear was given detention. Students who didn't make it to the gymnasium in time, or were caught were knocked unconscious with a jutsu. Apparently it hurt because most of the kids would cry out when they got hit, and when they came to they would complain of sore muscles.

Shisui was proud of the fact that he was the only one who made it to gymnasium the first time they had a drill. He was also the only one who had never gotten a detention. Of course the number of detentions went down as the students became more skilled.

Itachi, however, wasn't listening too closely. He knew there was a war going on. His mother explained it to him and Obito would describe missions to retrieve secret documents or assist in assassinations, and his father would talk about retrieving ninjas who deserted during missions. He was even taught what to do if the village was invaded and he got separated from his parents and clan. It didn't make much of an impact on him though. It was all part of his life and he just compartmentalized it along with lessons with mother, playtime with Shisui, and everything else.

After the food was gone Itachi and Shisui left the table and went to his room. The ninja cats were gone. They had left with the other ninjas earlier that morning. The two boys decided to read Itachi's new books, but Itachi was still too antsy and could only read for a few minutes at a time before staring out of the window. After a while he heard deep breathing coming from his bed and when he turned he saw Shisui sleeping. It was nap time, after all, Itachi thought to himself. But he wasn't tired. He continued to stand at the window and read until Shisui woke up an hour later and told him their TV show was on.

The living room was next to the kitchen and had large sliding doors that opened into the garden. It was a large, airy room with three couches and several chairs. Two couches sat in front of the TV, facing each other. The third couch was currently placed so it faced out into the garden, but was on casters so it could be moved to face into the room if more seating was needed. The chairs were placed in three locations in the room so that they formed small conversation areas, each with a small table in the middle to place drinks.

As clan leader, Fugaku would sometimes have several people over so the room was designed for relaxing in after meetings. At the moment it had two small boys sitting on the floor three feet from the TV watching anime ninjas attacking bad guys. It was a re-run, but they didn't care.

Itachi was so engrossed in the show that when Shisui accidentally bumped him after raising his arms to cheer for one of the good guys, he jumped. Shisui thought that was funny and laughed. Itachi could be so serious at times. Itachi immediately returned his attention back to the TV. He didn't want to miss a single one of the ninja maneuvers used by the good guys or the bad guys. He wondered which one his father was going to teach him tonight.

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Fugaku returned home around 7pm. He was tired and really wanted nothing more than to go to bed. However, when he approached the house he saw a small boy sitting at the top of the porch stairs. "Well I guess you're ready for training, then." He said with a small smile.

"Yes!" The boy stood up straight, then bowed "Welcome home father. I hope you had a good day at work."

"It's good to see you remember your manners. Run out into the garden and I'll be out in about 15 minutes." He watched Itachi run around the porch then he walked into the house and made his way to the living room where Mikoto was reading a magazine. The doors were open and he could see that Itachi was already in the garden, standing near the koi pond.

"Itachi has been excited all day about beginning his training. How was your day? I assume it was pretty busy." Mikoto turned around on the couch to look at Fugaku as she spoke.

"Most of the ninjas were sent on the mission this morning. The police station is taking up the slack by filling in various functions at the ninja detention center and guard positions. I decided it would be better to combine the civilian and military detainees so we would only have to watch one facility until this is over. I spent all day moving prisoners around. A couple tried to escape, but we caught them without too much trouble." Fugaku ran his hand through his hair and glanced toward the hallway. "We ordered take-out around 5:00 so I'm not hungry."

Fugaku considered it good luck that the number of civilian prisoners at the time was only around 20, but he also hoped having them in close proximity to ninja prisoners wouldn't cause problems. Most of the civilians weren't ninjas and couldn't defend themselves if they were attacked. On the other hand he didn't have enough policemen to cover both the civilian and military jails, and continue patrols. Several of them had been called into active duty to help with the mission. All they could do now was hope nothing happened.

"I went to the elder's funeral today as well. The only people there were Kagura, the priest, the Third Hokage and I. Kagura said he just wanted to be put in the ground without any fanfare. It only lasted about 15 minutes. Too bad, if we could have waited a couple weeks it would have been well attended. He was a famous ninja in his day." Fugaku paused and changed the subject. "How about you, did you get any training in with Itachi?"

Mikoto sighed. "He was so excited about training with you tonight that we never got past 5 x 4. I'll start the chakra training tomorrow." Fugaku frowned at her but she quickly replied "It'll be okay. He learns quickly, and uhhh…. Fugaku, look outside!" She gasped and put her hand over her mouth. He turned around and his eyes went wide.

"Did you teach him that?" Fugaku was shocked.

"No! I think the only time he ever saw that was on TV." Mikoto had stood up and moved to the porch. Itachi turned around and waved to his parents. He was using his chakra to stand on top of the water in the koi pond. It was a move that usually wasn't learned until a child had graduated the academy and entered his genin apprenticeship – around the age of 10 or 11. A four-year-old with enough chakra control to teach himself such a move was unheard of.

"Amazing." Fugaku stood where he was for a moment, then moved onto the porch. "Might as well start the training then." He had a small smile on his face. "Come over here Itachi." He called to his son and motioned to the part of the yard that was bare of vegetation. "You will only do basic training exercises here, as we don't want to ruin the yard. For advanced exercises there is an area outside of the main gates that our clan utilizes. For now we will train here on the weekdays and on my day off we will practice outside the gates.

"To begin with I will teach you some basic routines for Taijutsu. Taijutsu is a basic hand-to-hand combat maneuver that is used in conjunction with the Sharingan, so it is very important to master all aspects of it."

"Yes father. I will practice very hard." Itachi was very serious and watched his father intently.

"Good. Now first I will run down 12 basic moves. Watch closely." He did each routine slowly with a short pause in between. "Now you try."

"Yes!" He repeated the moves, much faster than his father.

"Very good, but you need to go slow. This exercise is also about control. It takes more muscles to hold a position than to go fast. These exercises work to stretch and strengthen the muscles. It is also a way to focus chakra. Now try it again." Itachi did the routines at the same pace his father had done. He noticed that his muscles did feel different. "Good. Now we will repeat this exercise for the next hour, then tomorrow I will teach you more routines. In a couple weeks we will begin actual attacks."

"Why can't we do that now?" Itachi wanted action.

"Because if you don't know the Taijutsu moves you can't use them, which defeats the purpose of Taijutsu altogether. These moves are also used by some as a way to meditate. If you are angry or anxious you can go through these moves, focusing your mind and chakra on your muscles and the feel of the wind and sun on your body as you move. Some consider it a challenge to go as slow as they can – taking minutes to complete one move." He moved into the first position as he explained his reasoning to his son.

"Oh. That makes sense." Itachi had sometimes seen his fellow clansmen by the lake doing these exercises, but he hadn't thought twice about it. His mother would even do them when she thought he was napping.

They actually spent the next 1-1/2 hours practicing. Fugaku got lost in his thoughts and forgot Itachi was next to him until Mikoto called to them and said it was time for Itachi's bath. He looked down at the boy and while he was trying to keep up it was obvious that he was very tired. He was proud of him for not complaining. A ninja frequently had to go the extra mile with little sleep, no food, and a sore body to complete a mission. Complaining was not an option.

The training was going to get a lot harder. Fugaku expected it would end it tears more often than not, but if Itachi was already showing this much fortitude, then maybe it wouldn't be that painful for him. "Go with your mother and get ready for bed." Itachi bowed and thanked him for the training then ran into the house.

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The rest of the week was spent practicing academic subjects and chakra control with his mother, and Taijutsu with his father. By the third day he had adjusted to his new routine and his concentration was back to normal. Mikoto also noticed that his naps were lasting two hours now instead of one, and suspected he wasn't sleeping at night. The fifth night she got up to get a drink of water and as she passed his room she saw him awake and practicing his Taijutsu moves.

"Itachi." She said his name quietly. He stopped and turned around to face her, looking at the floor with a guilty expression on his face. "You are doing three things wrong. Can you name them?"

He could only think of one thing and was puzzled. "I am out of bed when I should be asleep. What are the other two?"

"That is one. Number two is never stand with your back to a door or a window, and number three is that you did not use your chakra to sense me so I was able to sneak up on you. Getting back to number 1. When you have a chance to sleep you should take it. As a ninja you never know when your mission will call on you to go one or more days without sleep, without even so much as a nap. You need to take advantage of opportunities such and sleeping and eating. Now go back to bed, and don't let me catch you again." She knelt down in front of him as she spoke and did a finger-flick to his forehead. She hoped he caught her implied meaning, and decided in the future to get up at random times during the night to try to catch him again. It would be a fun game.

Itachi rubbed his forehead as he climbed back into bed. He had understood what his mother said, and he also silently agreed that it would be a fun game. Except he considered it training.

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At the end of the week the ninjas who had been sent out on the mission started to return. They had won the battle, but at a great cost. Itachi and Shisui's mothers were called on to help at the hospital. They did basic first-aid, paperwork, and crowd control as anxious relatives filled up waiting rooms. Itachi stayed with an elderly aunt until his father or mother came and took him home at night. This lasted for three days until enough of the regular hospital staff returned that they weren't needed. There was no training during this time and his parents seemed very tired and didn't talk much.

The fourth day he asked where Shisui was and his mother told him he was at school, and that he had lots of homework. Her tone of voice implied that there would be no more questions. There was no training that day either.

The fifth day he asked where Obito was. They were in the kitchen. His father was sitting at the table with him and his mother was putting some plates into a cupboard. She paused when he asked the question. Her eyes slowly closed and her head lowered so that her hair covered her face. She dropped the plates and they all broke. Shards of ceramic scattered across the floor. She started shaking and tried to take a step forward, then collapsed on the floor crying. Her hands covered her face and her head bent down to the floor.

Itachi was shocked and sat very still, not knowing what to do. His mother had never done this before.

Fugaku stared at the table. He had told her not to do this in front of Itachi and he was angry that she had disobeyed him. She kept trying to stop but she couldn't.

"Itachi, go to your room." Fugaku's voice was cold and filled with menace.

Itachi stood up cautiously and quickly fled the kitchen. However, instead of going to his room he turned around and peeked in through the doorway to see what was going on.

Fugaku walked up to his wife, grabbed her by the arm and threw her into the wall. He put his hand on her left shoulder to hold her up and slapped her across the face. He looked her directly in the eye. "I told you not to loose control in front of Itachi. He is the my heir and must not learn to show undo emotion. You were chosen to be the wife of the clan leader because you were able to control your emotions. If you continue to behave this way you will regret it."

Mikoto took several deep breaths and brought herself back under control. "I am sorry Fugaku. It won't happen again."

He released her. "You haven't told him, have you?"

She looked down at the floor and shook her head.

"Dammit." Fugaku cursed and turned his back on his wife, "I'll have a talk with him then."

Itachi quickly ran to his room hoping his father didn't know he was spying on them. Fugaku showed up a few minutes later. It was obvious that he was still very angry. Itachi was scared. He had never seen either of his parents act this way. He almost felt like hiding. The thought crossed his mind, but was quickly dismissed. He was sure his father would find him. But why had they acted that way when he asked about Obito? Did they hate him now? Had he done something wrong on his mission?

"Itachi. Come with me." Fugaku led Itachi to the meeting room in the middle of the house. He entered and sat at the front of the room on a mat. He motioned for Itachi to sit on a mat facing him. To be called into this room was a serious occasion. He was starting to feel a little sick.

"Itachi. You will tell no one what just happened with your mother. Do you understand? No one must see or suspect that the head family displays any weakness. No matter what the reason. When others around you are scared, sorrowful, or in despair you must be strong and look forward with resolve. It is the job of both you and me to carry them on our backs. If we fall prey to base emotions then we will fall and they will fall with us. Do you understand?" Fugaku's voice turned from angry to normal as he spoke.

Nothing Itachi had ever been told, even the oath he took a couple weeks ago to be the clan heir, ever stuck in his head as much as what his father just told him. It echoed deep into his soul and buried itself there permanently. He still felt scared though. He didn't want to be in this room alone with a man who was telling him to bury his emotions.

Fugaku used his Sharingan to look at his son. He could see the boy was scared, but the his face showed nothing. He wasn't even shaking. 'Is this normal?' he thought to himself. 'He's a four-year-old boy. Shouldn't he be crying?' Fugaku, for the first time, felt a little afraid of the boy sitting in front of him. 'He should be crying. He saw his mother collapse, and he saw me attack her, and now he is being lectured. The elder, what did he see when he looked at him? What is going through this boy's mind?' Fugaku continued to look at his son hoping to see something that could answer his questions. But nothing was revealed.

"Itachi. Obito was killed while protecting his teammates during the mission." He paused, but Itachi didn't move a muscle. "Do you know what that means?" Fugaku asked that question because wondered if Itachi understood death yet. It was easy to grasp that a person would not return home, but a little harder to grasp the biological reality of a corpse. Itachi looked down at the floor and his eyes half closed. Holding his head like this showed the lines that ran from the inside of his eyes to the outside of his mouth.

"Yes… father." Itachi replied slowly, like he was considering his words.

"Explain it to me."

"Ob…" Itachi gulped once. "Obito is not alive anymore. His soul is free to be reincarnated and live a new life."

Fugaku frowned. It wasn't a very good answer, but what exactly was he expecting him to say? He continued to look at Itachi. Except for stuttering over Obito's name there was still no emotion showing on his face.

'He's only four years old, there should be emotion.' Fugaku said to himself.

"It means much more than that. Continue."

"It means…he won't come over to play or tell stories anymore. And there will be a funeral. And we'll wear black clothes to the funeral." Itachi didn't know what his father was getting at. Dead was dead. He remembered when one of the older ninja cats died last year and they had a small funeral for him. Surely this was the same thing? He missed Obito. He wanted to go back to his room. He was told to suppress his emotions, then pressed about what death was, and now his father was staring at him with his Sharingan activated like he expected Itachi to do something.

"Do you feel sad?" Fugaku finally asked. For some reason he had a sudden urge to see some emotion out of the boy.

"Yes father."

"Why?"

"I want to play with him some more." Still the boy's face didn't change. Fugaku was getting angry. He could feel his wife's chakra as she approached the room and stood on the other side of the closed door. Itachi turned his head slightly. He could feel it too. She had herself under control finally. But Itachi was still worrying him. Angering him.

"Then why the hell aren't you crying!" He stood up and yelled at the boy. "You are four years old. You have _not_ been taught to control your emotions. What the hell is wrong with you?" He walked over to the boy and hit him hard across the head, knocking him to floor. He noticed that the boy was laying on his side with the same expression on his face. No sign of pain, fear, sadness, and no tears. Fugaku stormed out of the room and left the house before he completely lost control.

Itachi slowly stood up. He felt a little dizzy and put his hand up to his head. His mother rushed over to him and held his hand in place as she dragged him to the bathroom. "What's wrong mother?" He wondered why she was holding his head.

Mikoto set her son on the bathroom counter and with one hand grabbed a washcloth and dampened it in the water. In one motion she removed Itachi's hand and placed the washcloth on this head. Itachi looked at his hand. It was covered in so much blood it was dripping. Itachi swooned a little bit and started to feel sick. He could hear something he thought, but he wasn't sure. It was like a buzzing sound. He felt something being wrapped around his head and motion. Something was also rapping him repeatedly on the back whenever he closed his eyes. It kept waking him up. He felt the wind and sun. 'Warm. Red.' He kept saying over and over to himself. Then he finally fell asleep.

When Itachi woke up again he was in a room that was all white. His mother and father were standing a few feet away. He could see his mother using her fingers to comb her hair over a large bruise on her face.

Mikoto was angrily whispering to Fugaku, "He has a concussion! Why did you have to hit him so hard! He's just a child. They threatened to turn us over to child services if it happens again. You have to learn to control your anger! Remember what happened to your father!"

"I remember! I was there when he killed my…" He paused.

"Training injuries are expected. Things like this are tragic. Please Fugaku. The next time you get this angry, just leave." She looked at the ground and touched his arm as she pleaded with him.

'How can I tell her I am afraid of my own son?' Fugaku thought to himself. He looked over at Itachi who still had no emotion showing on his face.

'Who did grandpa kill?' Itachi wondered. "Can I go home now?" Itachi asked in a weak voice. For some reason he felt like falling asleep again, but he didn't know where he was and wanted to leave.

"I'll go tell the doctor he's awake, you stay here Mikoto." Fugaku left the room.

Mikoto sat down on the side of Itachi's bed. "You are in the hospital. You have a concussion. That means you hit your head so hard that your brain hit the side of your skull and is bruised. You also got a large cut on your scalp that required 10 stitches. You were given some drugs to help with the headache, but do you still hurt?"

"Not much, mother. It feels like I just want to sleep."

"If the doctor says it's okay you can come home. Otherwise you will stay here for a little while longer. But don't worry, I'll stay here with you, and your father will visit. He was really worried about what happened. I'm sorry. He was probably still upset at me and took it out on you." She turned and looked at the floor.

"Don't cry again mother." It was the only thing that Itachi could think of to say. "I don't want to miss Obito's funeral. When is it?"

"Tomorrow. They weren't able to recover his body but we will still have one. You know what he did? He attained the Sharingan. At the same time his teammate lost one of his eyes. So when he knew he was dying he had another teammate who was a medic nin give his Sharingan eye to the boy as a gift. So it's like a part of him is still alive."

"I met Rin when we were playing soccer."

"She is the medic nin. Kakashi is the boy that now has one Sharingan eye."

"Can Obito still see out of the eye?"

"No sweetie. Kakashi is the only one who can see out of that eye now."

"Well, it sounds like he's a lot better." A man in a long white jacket was standing in the doorway. "A question like that isn't something someone with brain damage would normally ask. I think we'll just keep you here overnight hooked up to these monitors, but you can leave at 8am if nothing shows up. The funeral is at noon so you won't miss a thing." He smiled at Itachi and then leaned over to check his bandages. "Can you count?"

"Yes." Itachi answered calmly. He hated being asked that question. He wasn't an idiot after all.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" He caught the boys' exasperation and smirked.

"Three." He answered.

"Good. Good. Now go back to sleep. The body heals faster when it has rest." Itachi didn't need to be told twice as he closed his eyes.

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The funeral was very different from what Itachi expected. He was told it would be a memorial service at the memorial stone outside of the village. It was a large stone where the names of those who were killed in action were engraved. There would be one big ceremony for everyone who died in the mission because too many had died to make individual ceremonies practical.

The clan gathered at the front of the Uchiha compound. Everyone was dressed in black. Itachi was wearing Shisui's old clothes since Mikoto had been too upset to go shopping. He was also wearing a small hat to cover his bandages. He stood between his father and mother as they walked to the memorial stone. Everyone behind them was organized according to rank in the clan so Shisui's family was near the back. They walked in an orderly formation.

They were almost there when Itachi realized his mother was holding his hand. He didn't remember her taking it and berated himself for not noticing. A good ninja would have noticed.

When they arrived at the memorial Itachi noticed that there were a lot of other people there. His father knelt down next to him and pointed out some of the other clans. They were also standing off in groups like his. Itachi noticed one clan was probably three or four times larger than his and they all had white eyes. This got his attention.

"Father, why do they all have white eyes and only some of us have Sharingan?"

Fugaku and a few of the other Uchiha's standing nearby looked at the boy is surprise. "You are very observant. A long time ago one of the Hyuuga clan rebelled against his shackles. They did not allow their abilities to be used by anyone except the main branch of the clan. He left and formed his own clan, mixing his blood through jutsu or other bloodlines, we don't know the specifics, but he created the Sharingan and the Uchiha clan. We still have separation of Main and side branches, but in ability we make no differentiation. You will inherit the clan leadership, but if Shisui turns out to be more powerful than you there are no bad feelings. He is not looked down on and neither are you. Do not mistake the gifts of your bloodline for you ability. They are two different things. The Hyuuga clan has yet to learn that. After our ancestors' betrayal, instead of looking inside to find a deficiency, they bound their fellow clansman into an unholy pact that kills them at the leader's whim."

The people standing around nodded their heads in agreement and he heard murmuring "I'm glad I'm an Uchiha" was repeated by several of them.

"Who are they?" Itachi pointed to two men and a woman standing in front of the memorial stone. The two men wore white triangular hats and long black robes. One man was short and very old. The second was younger ('about fathers age' Itachi thought) and had long blond hair and bright blue eyes. He was holding the hand of a red-haired woman who was wearing a long black robe.

"The old man is the Third Hokage, the blond man is the Fourth Hokage and the woman is the Fourth's wife." Fugaku was getting a little concerned again. His son was treating this like a family outing.

"Father, why are all those pictures on that table?" He was referring to a two long tables set up next to the memorial stone. One held pictures, one held flowers.

"The Hokages will each say a speech to remember the people who have died. When they are done each person here will remove a flower from the first table, walk to the second table and put the flower in front of the picture of the person who died. Then you put your hands together, say a prayer, and any last words you want the dead to hear, then bow and leave so the next person can do the same." He was quiet for a minute then continued. "Some people say their prayers out loud and some say them in their mind."

Itachi didn't have anymore questions after than. He continued to hold his mothers hand. At one point she opened her hand to let go and he squeezed her hand so she wouldn't. He didn't know why he did that, but maybe he was afraid she would cry again. He was starting to feel tired, though. It felt like he had been standing for a long time.

"Fugaku." Mikoto said quietly.

"You'd better pick him up." He answered. Itachi's face had gone white and he was swaying. He felt his mother picked him up, then cradled him in her arms so his head was slightly lower than his body. His eyes started to close and he felt someone touching his throat then he felt something warm washing over his head. His eyes opened again and he saw Kagura smiling down at him.

"You'll be fine Itachi. Does your head hurt at all? And don't be brave about it, tell me the truth." Kagura bent down a little and looked Itachi directly in the eye.

"It doesn't hurt, but it feels a little funny."

"Do you still feel sleepy?"

"No. I feel awake now."

"Is he okay? Should I take him back to the hospital?" Mikoto asked.

"He's fine. He just overdid it by standing for so long. The problem with kids is they have two settings – 'fast forward' and 'stop'. Nothing in between to tell them to take it easy. Just take him home when you're done and let him sleep for a couple days." Her smile disappeared. She bent over and put a small kiss on his cheek and then went back to join her husband. Fugaku reached over patted his sons arm.

"Its okay kid, just relax and listen to the speeches." Itachi had a worried look on his face. Seeing Obito's mother acting braver than his own mother really affected him. He was finally feeling sad. Looking back through the crowd of Uchihas behind him he saw Shisui. Both him and his mother had tears streaming down their faces and were holding tissues. Many of the others did to, men and women. Yet neither his father, mother, nor himself were allowed to show such emotions. Instead of letting the tears that formed in his eyes to fall, he put on an emotionless mask and listened as the two Hokages made their speeches.

After they had finished talking Mikoto adjusted Itachi in her arms and they moved to form a line in front of the two tables. When their turn came Itachi was placed on the ground behind his father. He watched as his father took several flowers then placed one in front of several different pictures and prayed. Most of what he said was silent. But Itachi heard the last phrase "Obito, despite your own opinion of yourself, we never doubted your bravery, and in the end even you believed it."

Itachi's mother gave him one flower and he put it in front of Obito's picture then copied his father. But the only thing he could think of saying was "I wish we could play soccer again."

Itachi and Mikoto followed Fugaku to the two Hokages. Mikoto picked Itachi up again so he wouldn't get tired. There was a boy and a girl standing next to the Fourth Hokage. His wife had her arm around the girl's shoulders, comforting her. Kagura and her husband came a minute later. He recognized the girl as Rin, but he had never seen the boy before. He had a white bandage wrapped around his head and his forehead protector was angled over his right eye. He had whitish-silver hair that was sticking up at an angle. Tears were streaming down his face and he kept trying to wipe them away

The Fourth looked at the gathered Uchihas then put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "I would like to introduce Kakashi Hatake, and the medic nin Rin. They were both Obito's teammates and, as you know, were with him when he died."

Obito's parents moved closer. "Let me see your eyes, Kakashi." Kagura touched his cheek. He lifted his forehead protector and revealed one Sharingan with two tomoe. Kagura gave him a hug and he hugged her back. Obito's father rubbed the boys back.

"You've been give a very precious gift. Don't throw it away, and try to live a long happy life." Kagura said between her sobs.

"If you need anything at all, or just want to come over and talk, feel free. If you don't we'll come looking for you to make sure you are okay." Her husband spoke in what he hoped was a friendly voice.

"Thank-you. I will come and visit. I will not throw Obito's legacy away and I will live a long life." The boy said seriously as Kagura let him go.

"And you are the medic nin who did the operation." Kagura stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Rin, "I am impressed with such skill in so young a girl. I have spoken to your sensei and I will be taking you on as a student of mine. I trained with the great Sannin Tsunade at one time and it sounds like you have skills that could compare with hers. I look forward to working with you. Please be at the hospital tomorrow at 8am." She released her and looked into her tear-filled brown eyes. This was the girl her Obito had a crush on ever since he had met her three years earlier. Kagura suddenly realized that Rin could have been her daughter-in-law one, but now… that could never happen.

"Th…Thank-you very much." Rin was surprised. She missed Obito so much that she hadn't slept much since he died. Both she and Kakashi hadn't slept at all the previous night after their sensei told them that the Uchiha clan leader and Obito's parents wanted to meet them.

Rin reached out to Itachi and held his hand. "Hello Itachi. Obito told me all about your birthday party. He really enjoyed himself when he was spending time with you and Shisui." Itachi looked at her then lowered his head.

"Yes. We had a lot of fun." He looked at her for a minute then squirmed a little so his mother would put him down. Once on his feet he walked over and put his arms around Rin. It wasn't something he normally did, but for some reason it seemed like the right thing to do.

Rin knelt down and returned the hug. "That's right, I said I owed you a hug the last time we met." She smiled at him. He felt a hand on his back and Kakashi was kneeling down next to him also.

"We'll all miss him." He said as he stoked Itachi's back. They broke the hug and stood up. Mikoto gave Rin and Kakashi a hug before her husband turned to the boy to speak to him.

"Kakashi, you have indeed been given a great gift. You will find throughout the years that the Sharingan is more than it appears. Neither I, nor anyone else in the clan can pass all information about it to you, but if you have questions or problems, bring them up immediately. Such an operation has never been done before and we are unsure about what future effects this will have on you. However, considering the excellent job Rin did on the transplant there is every reason to believe that it will continue to evolve as it would normally. You may still find that you have restrictions – but that will only be because you do not have the Uchiha body to work with the eye. You are the son of the esteemed White Fang, though, and I am sure you will find ways to work around any limitation you may be confronted with." He turned to Rin. "Thank-you for your medical skills, Rin. Kagura's offer to further your education should not be taken lightly. She is coming out of retirement to do this and I hope you two much happiness in this endeavor."

After they said their farewells, Itachi found himself being carried by Kagura. Mikoto's arms were tired, and when Fugaku offered to carry the boy Kagura picked him up and said she would. No one felt like arguing, least of all Itachi, who was starting to get sleepy again. In fact he didn't even remember the walk back to the house. He was asleep seconds after Kagura lifted him up.

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Itachi awoke several hours later, very hungry. It was dark out and the house was silent. Walking down the hall to his parent's room, he stood in the open doorway and could see his parents – they were both sleeping on their backs.

"Mother." Itachi said in a small voice. He waited a few seconds then said it again. She woke up and saw him.

"What's wrong Itachi? Are you sick?" She answered as Fugaku lifted himself up on one elbow to look at his son. He had never woken them up in the middle of the night before – well, not since he was a baby.

"I'm hungry. Can I have a riceball?" His stomach growled. Fugaku suppressed a laugh and laid back down.

"Yes sweetie, I'll get one for you." She started to get up.

"Can I get my own? Are they in the refrigerator?" He wanted to be independent, but he wasn't allowed in the kitchen by himself.

"Yes, I think your old enough now. Make sure you have a glass of milk with it and brush your teeth afterwards." She smiled at him.

"Yes!" He said happily. He walked proudly to the kitchen and took two riceballs out of the refrigerator and poured some milk into a neon green plastic glass. He went into the living room and sat on the floor in a corner by the sliding glass doors so he could look outside at the lake.

He saw a man standing near edge of the lake. He appeared to be wearing all black and was staring straight ahead with his back to Itachi. He didn't move at all while Itachi ate. When he finished his riceballs and milk he opened the glass door to step out onto the porch. He stood still so he could continue to watch the man. He gasped. It didn't look like a man, it looked like a boy.

"Obito." Itachi said quietly. Even though the lake was a quarter mile away, the boy turned around and looked at Itachi as if he heard him. Now it looked like a man again. 'What's going on?' Itachi wondered to himself. The man was wearing a mask over his face that had one eye hole exposing the left eye. The mask itself was orange with several black lines in a swirl pattern that ended at the eye hole. The man and the boy looked at each other for several minutes. Then he put a finger up to where his lips should be and in his mind Itachi heard "Shhhh!" He looked at him in surprise and watched as he disappeared into thin air a few seconds later.

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**In the next episode Itachi ties to catch the masked man to find out who he is. There is also more interaction his father. The story is definitely getting darker. Stick it in your story alert so you won't forget to read it. And review – let me know what you like or hate. Until next week – bye!**


	3. Chapter 3 Stranger Revealed

**Here it is – the third chapter. By now you must have developed some kind of opinion of the story – so review and tell me what you think.**

**In the last episode we were given glimpses to the Uchiha's opinion of the Hyuuga clan, introduced to Kakashi Hatake, Rin, the Third and Fourth Hokage (and his lovely wife), and a mysterious masked man. Also, sadly, Obito died and we got a darker glimpse into the unsettled and conflicted inner workings of Fugaku's mind as Itachi recovers from a concussion sustained at the hands of his father.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto**

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**Chapter 3 – Stranger Revealed**

Seven months passed in the fourth year of Itachi Uchiha's young life. Training with his father now consisted of Taijutsu exercises and physical attacks. Bruises, a few minor cuts, and a lot of dirt-eating were all a part of the game. Itachi never complained and tried to master every move his father taught him. His father would also make him watch as the adults trained together so he could see more advanced moves. His mother continued to teach him math, chakra control, shuriken throwing, and in the last couple weeks decided to teach him Go so he would learn strategy. He would also train a little bit with Shisui once or twice a week.

The man in the orange mask kept returning to the lake in the middle of the night when only Itachi was awake. He would get up in order to practice Taijutsu moves, but also so he could mask his chakra so his mother wouldn't sense him. She would get up a couple times during the night to try to catch him. He was getting good – it had been a month since she last caught him.

Tonight he had gone to the kitchen to get some water and he wondered outside and stood on the porch. The night air was cold and he could see his breath in the light of the half moon. It was fall and the cold wind blew empty tree branches against each other, while newly fallen leaves scattered across the ground. His hair blew around his face and kept getting in his eyes. He reached up with one hand and gathered it away from his face. Itachi walked back into the house and made his way to the foyer. Masking his chakra, he silently picked up his shoes and jacket and left the house. Once he was in the yard he put on his shoes, zipped up his jacket and walked down to the lake. He sat down on a large rock and waited.

There was enough light from the surrounding houses and the half-moon to allow him to see without a flashlight. The wind blowing off the small black lake was colder than the wind in his yard and he stuffed his hands in his pockets. He kept looking around, trying to see if the masked man was nearby. He had been coming down here off and on for several months, but had never once been able to meet the stranger. He never told anyone about the man, as he wasn't totally sure if he was seeing a ghost or not. His mother would tease him, and so would Shisui if he suggested such a thing. His father would probably be disappointed. If he could talk to the man and find out why he kept showing up then…well Itachi wasn't sure what he would do next. He thought about it occasionally, but never decided on a course of action. He thought it might be a ghost because sometimes it looked to be the height of an older boy, and sometimes the height of a tall man. Itachi was a very curious and intelligent boy who loved puzzles, and this was a very good puzzle.

The moon moved across the night sky and Itachi stifled his five-hundredth yawn. 'I guess he's not coming tonight. He never comes if I wait for him. Mother is teaching me strategy, maybe I need to use it here.' But nothing came to him as he talked to himself. Walking back to the house he heard a dog barking in the distance, and someone yelling at it to shut-up. Itachi broke into a run in case the dog was barking at him. It wouldn't do to have the neighbors see him outside alone at night.

Itachi stepped up onto the porch and looked back at the lake. The man in the orange mask was standing on the rock he had just been sitting on! The boy's eyes widened in shock and he held his breath.

"What a jerk!" Itachi said out loud. He stopped masking his chakra.

The man was wearing a black cape that fluttered behind him in the wind. He wore black armor on his arms and outside thighs that was very old fashioned - it looked like something the people in pictures from 100 years ago wore. Black gloves covered his hands and a black cloth covered his head and neck. His black pants came to mid-calf and he wore white leggings between his blue sandals and the top of his pants. His hair was black and was the standard style worn by about half the male population of the Uchiha clan – short in front and spiked straight back (Itachi had a flashback to a trip to the pet shop where he had told his mother that the cockatoo's and cockatiel's had the same hair style as Shisui's dad – she'd laughed over that for weeks). The stranger was tall and thin. Itachi figured he was much taller than his father, but then his father was shorter than a lot of the other men in the clan anyway.

The boy and the man continued to stare at each other for four or five minutes before the man raised his arm and waved. Itachi gasped and opened his eyes wide. He couldn't believe it. He also couldn't believe it when he lifted his own arm and waved back. The man stood there for another minute then lifted his head slightly and pointed to Itachi's house. The boy looked behind him then looked at the lake again. The stranger was gone. He then cried out softly in surprise as he felt someone's arms wrap around his torso and life him up in the air.

"Gotcha!" His mother laughed at him.

"Awe! Mother…" Itachi was upset about being caught and frowned.

"Come on, cheer up. You're getting better, it's been forever since the last time I caught you." She put him down and they walked back into the house. He took off his shoes and jacket and started walking back to his room, but his mother started walking to the living room. "Aren't you going back to bed Mother?"

"Uh, yes, but I think I want to watch the late movie for while. Good night Itachi." She smiled at him and he continued back to his room.

"Good night Mother." He answered as he stifled another yawn.

Mikoto looked at the TV and wondered if she should really turn it on. She couldn't sleep. Fugaku had been in a dark mood lately. The elders suggested that the two of them should have a second child in case something happened to Itachi. Fugaku said he didn't want to. She actually suspected he couldn't have any more children – an operation or a jutsu perhaps. She had never used birth control and yet she never got pregnant again after Itachi was born. She had confided her suspicions to the head of the elder council, even though she felt like a rat for talking about her husband's personal information. He had told her not to worry about it. But his words had worried her too. What did he mean by that?

She also couldn't get the idea out of her head that something was wrong between Fugaku and his son. Itachi was beginning to act very formally around his father. Fugaku was treating Itachi more like a student and less like a son. She wondered if her husband did it on purpose, or if it was subconscious. She wished she could ask him, but she knew he would never answer. She wasn't even sure what to ask if she did talk to him about it. It was more of a feeling and when she watched them train she wasn't sure if she was being paranoid or actually seeing a problem. He did brag about his son's progress and said he was a prodigy, and he seemed to truly be proud of Itachi, but in the five and a half years they had been married she had learned something about the clan leader – he knew what to say and when to say it – even if he didn't mean a word of it.

"I'm going in circles." She said to herself. "Maybe I'll talk to Kagura and see what she would suggest for anxiety."

Fugaku came into the living room a half hour later and saw his wife lying asleep on the couch. He covered her with a blanket that had been folded at the end of one of the chairs. She had been moody ever since the elders asked them to have another child. He was not going to follow their orders, though. Technically, he didn't have to. However, in a small clan like theirs, going against the elder council could have dire consequences. Mikoto really wanted another child though. He sighed and walked back to their bedroom and stared at the ceiling until dawn.

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The next evening Itachi stood in the garden in the dark and waited for his father to come outside and train with him. Fugaku had come home an hour earlier, yelled at Itachi to wait for him outside and then went in the kitchen to talk to Mikoto. He heard loud voices – they seemed to be arguing about a baby. He didn't know any babies, yet they seemed to be arguing about this baby quite a lot. The argument then changed to his father ranting about the fourth Hokage's interference in Police and Uchiha affairs and he told Mikoto not to answer any questions if asked. Well, that didn't make any sense to Itachi either. Was the fourth upset about the baby too?

Eventually Fugaku came out of the house. He was in a very bad mood, and Itachi could feel powerful chakra coming from his father. It was a little disconcerting and he felt like backing away as his father walked up to him. He stayed where he was though, and didn't show any emotion.

"Itachi!" He said sternly. "Taijutsu warm up – follow me." Fugaku forced himself to relax and went through several different Taijutsu moves. They did this for about 15 minutes, then Fugaku swung his leg around to trip Itachi. The boy jumped over his leg, then jumped back a couple feet and crouched down on the ground waiting for the next attack.

"Very good. You never dodged that before." Fugaku did a body flicker jutsu that enabled him to run quickly behind Itachi and kicked at him again. As soon as Itachi had seen his father disappear he jumped up and back two feet, effectively missing his father's kick again. Itachi quickly moved both his legs on the ground under his father in an attempt to trip him, then rolled away and quickly stood up. Fugaku had disappeared. Itachi felt his feet disappear out from under him and he landed on his rear end in the dirt. He quickly rolled away and stood up again.

The sparring went on for the next forty-five minutes. The training had been getting more and more intense and Itachi felt anger growing in his father. The attacks were coming faster and he was having trouble dodging them. For the last ten minutes he had been on the defense, having abandoned offense due to the severity of the attacks. He was growing tired, and was breathing heavy. Sweat dripped off his face and got in his eyes. His hair tie had snapped and was lying on the ground, and his hair was now in his face as well. He retreated to a corner of the yard and sighed.

'It can't go on much longer, can it?' He really wanted to stop. He wondered if he could say something to his father, but decided not to. For one thing, he didn't have enough air to grunt, no less form a word. Besides, his father would not stop until he wanted to. He wondered if his mother would say something. But she never watched the training anymore. He closed his eyes and put his head down.

"What the hell do you think you are doing!" Fugaku yelled at him and grabbed his left arm. "Are you tired?"

"Ye…yes fa…ther." Itachi panted. Suddenly he felt Fugaku's hold on his arm get stronger. An intense pain radiated from his arm and Itachi cried out. He felt himself being thrown and landed about five feet from where Fugaku was standing. Itachi looked up cradling his left arm as the pain intensified. It overwhelmed his senses and he struggled to catch his breath. Tears appeared in his eyes and he started trembling violently. His father took a couple steps toward him and Itachi whimpered and scooted backward a foot.

"Oh – so now you cry!" Fugaku was livid. "Ninja must fight beyond exhaustion, beyond hunger, beyond pain! And here you are cringing on the ground crying!" Itachi started sniffling and whimpered some more and his father advanced. He closed his eyes expected to be hit again, but it never came. When he opened them his mother was crouching down in from of him in a defensive Taijutsu move.

"Leave him alone!" She said in a loud voice. "He's only four years old and does not have the endurance for such maneuvers yet. Are you trying to kill him?"

When she spoke the word "kill" Itachi's eyes opened wide and for the first time he feared for his life. His father was attacking him, his mother was defending him. What was going on? This was worse than when his father gave him a concussion. 'But,' he thought to himself 'Ninja face this everyday. They never get scared, why am I scared?' He tried to bring his emotions under control, but he couldn't. His arm was hurting so bad and his right hand felt something pointy as it held his left arm to his chest.

"Get away from him! I am teaching him to be a good ninja. An Uchiha ninja. He must learn to deal with pain and move beyond it." He stared at Mikoto. She turned slightly to look at her son.

"Fugaku! His arm is broken! We have to get him to the hospital!" She yelled at her husband. He walked over to her and hit her so hard Itachi could hear a loud thud when she hit the ground. Her eyes were open and she looked at Fugaku as tears streamed out of her eyes. She lost consciousness a few seconds later.

"You will sit out in the yard tonight and tomorrow morning we will take you to the doctor. It will be your first lesson in managing pain." He started walking toward Itachi and the boy started to cry with loud sobs and lots of tears. Fugaku's face turned red and he raised his hand to strike the boy. Itachi instantly panicked and took off at a full run. He ran out of the yard, and into the street. He kept running until he passed through the gate of the Uchiha compound and into the Konoha village streets. Holding his arm close to him and sobbing loudly he passed many people. No one tried to stop him. Even when he finally ran out of the main Konoha village gates the two ninja on guard just let him go.

He ran into the woods a quarter mile down the road. He crawled under a rhododendron bush and kept crying. His arm hurt worse than ever, and his father said he couldn't go to the doctor until morning. His mother was crying too after she had been hit. What would Fugaku do to him when he found him?

Itachi felt like a failure. Ninja don't run away and hide, crying. He kept trying to stop, but it would make him cough and sputter. He was trying so hard that he was beginning to have trouble breathing.

"Hello!" A deep voice said, directly in front of the crying boy. Itachi looked up and through his tears and the hair in his face he saw a man in an orange mask. "Why are you crying Itachi?"

"I…" pant…pant "fai..lure" pant…pant. He was starting to have a lot of trouble breathing, and felt light headed.

"Itachi, I'm going to pull you out of there by your legs, so don't panic." The stranger said in a friendly voice. He took a hold of Itachi's legs and scooted him out into the open. He then picked the boy up and set him in his lap with the boys back against his stomach. Itachi was starting loose consciousness and he could barely get any air into his lungs. His crying had stopped, but his chest felt funny – like it was being squeezed. The man put his hand on the boy's chest and Itachi saw a blue light coming from it. He felt warmth radiating through his chest and his breathing got easier. But as soon as he could breathe he started crying again and pulled his broken arm closer to his chest.

"Let me look at your arm and I can fix it up. Then we'll fix those tears, okay?" Itachi nodded his head and tried to stop crying again, but he immediately started to have trouble breathing.

The man looked down at the boy "Itachi, if you keep this up you are going to start hyperventilating again. No reasonable person can fault a four-year-old child for crying when his arm is broken, so go ahead and cry if you want."

Itachi nodded his head. The man pushed the boys head back against his chest so he could extract his arm. Itachi was holding it so tightly that it took a few minutes to convince him to let go. The man gasped in shock. It was fractured in two different places in the upper arm with a break a couple inches from his wrist that had part of the bone piercing the skin. He looked down at the crying boy. His face was covered in tears, and dirty from hiding under the shrub. This next part was going to be hard. The bone had to be reset and it was going to hurt… a lot. He would have to render the boy unconscious, and hope the pain of resetting the bone didn't wake him up. First he would heal the two fractures so that they wouldn't move while he reset the break.

He put his arm under the boys' legs and holding his upper body with his other arm he shifted him onto the ground. He removed his cape, laid it on the ground, then picked the boy up again and put him on the cape.

"Itachi, I'm going to knock you unconscious so I can fix your broken arm. Okay?" The boy nodded his head as the masked man put his hand over Itachi's forehead. The blue glow re-appeared and a moment later the boy was unconscious. The man sighed deeply and put his hand up to his head. The boy was very small. He wasn't too familiar with little kids, but he would guess that the boy was smaller than most four-year-olds. Because of this, setting the bone would be tricky. 'Kind of like re-connecting a broken chopstick in the dark.' He thought to himself.

He took off his gloves, then, as carefully as he could, he used a combination of chakra and touch to find the bones and determine how much damage was done to them and the surrounding tissue. He then knelt down over the boy and lowered his foreleg to immobilize him in case he woke up. Then, holding the two sections of the bone, he pulled back and moved it back into place where it belonged. The boy jerked his body once, but remained unconscious. He then used his chakra again and healed the break, then stopped the bleeding.

Itachi wasn't completely unlucky – the break had avoided the arteries so he hadn't lost a lot of blood. But he had lost some and it would make him lightheaded for a few hours, especially considering his size. When he finished he put a make-shift splint around the arm, immobilizing it so it wouldn't move. Even though he had healed it, it would still take a couple weeks for the bone to re-gain its strength. Not to mention the swelling and soreness that would continue to cause pain for a few days.

While the boy slept the masked man covered him with his travel blanket, gave him half of a soldier pill designed to increase blood production (he put it under the boys tongue and let it dissolve), and washed his face off. A couple hours later he woke Itachi up.

"Did you have a nice nap, Itachi?" A deep voice asked through the darkness as Itachi opened his eyes.

"No. I don't feel good"

"Do you want to throw up?" He put his hand on the boys' forehead. There was a slight fever, but nothing to worry about.

"I don't think so. Can I go back to sleep now?" He started to close his eyes. The man lifted Itachi so he was sitting up facing him.

"Not yet. We need to talk, then I'll take you home."

"But I can't go home!" Itachi's eyes opened wide as he looked pleadingly at the man. "He said I can't come back in the house until tomorrow!"

"Yes, I saw and heard what happened. Nevertheless, I will return you to your own bed for the rest of the night, and Fugaku will not harm you like this again." Itachi looked very confused. He saw what happened?

"Is mother alright?"

"She is fine. Your father left the house and your mother woke up right after you ran away and went into the house. Kagura came by a few minutes later and is with her right now." He wondered why she hadn't been able to defend her son better. Mikoto was a very powerful kunoichi. He knew a few things about her potential, but since Kunoichi were so often underestimated she would never attain it. 'I'll have to check up on her later to see what is going on.' He thought to himself.

"First things first. My name is Madara Uchiha." He looked straight into Itachi's eyes. Itachi could see a Sharingan through the single eyehole in the man's mask. "I am a relative of yours, but the exact connection is unimportant. I was notified that you have a destiny to fulfill, and I am here to lead you on the path to that destiny."

"Was it the old elder? Oh, but he died. How could he tell you?" Itachi's confusion kept growing. His arm started throbbing again and he closed his eyes.

"Swallow this Itachi-kun." The man handed him a small white pill and a small canteen of water. Itachi drank almost all the water after he swallowed the pill. He noticed that the pain started to subside.

"Thank-you Madara."

"It's not important how I found out. Though I am sure one day you will figure it out on your own. What is important is that I am going to train you. You have an older cousin, Shisui?"

"Yes. He's my best friend." Itachi tried to smile, but his mouth wouldn't work. It was too tired, like the rest of his body.

Madara smirked to himself under his mask and thought to himself, 'Perfect. Every boy needs a best friend, right?' He paused then spoke out loud "On Saturday I want you to tell Shisui to bring you to this spot. Don't tell him why, I'll explain it to him when he gets here. Every Saturday I will train both you and Shisui. Friends should stick together, and if you train together you both will grow very powerful. Do not tell anyone else that you saw me."

"But, Mother told me not to go off with strangers." Itachi answered calmly. He really wanted to train with Madara, though. He seemed much more powerful than father, and was nicer than father too.

"Your mother is a good woman. Unfortunately you must disobey her in this. It is of vital importance that you learn ninjitsu, and your father is failing badly at that task. If I were to show myself openly in the village it would cause problems for the Uchiha clan. Also, many of the clan members themselves have strayed from the path and would not welcome me with open arms. In fact they would try to kill me and I would be forced to defend myself. Do you understand?" His deep voice was serious.

"Yes. I understand. Shisui and I will be here on Saturday after breakfast." Itachi was starting to look forward to the weekend.

"Be sure to bring lunch with you. I will let you go so you are home in time for dinner."

"Do I still have to train with father?" Itachi hoped Madara would say no.

"Yes you do." He said in a kinder voice. "He must keep training you in order to maintain his position in the clan. But don't worry, I'll have one of the elders talk to him about what happened tonight. Now, let's get you home and into your bed." He picked the boy up and used a jutsu to disappear.

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Madara walked into Itachi's bedroom and put the boy down. Itachi immediately tried to climb into bed but Madara knelt down and put his hand on the boys shoulder.

"You should take those dirty clothes off and put on your pajamas. If you get your bed sheets dirty your mother will be mad." He stood up and reached behind the pillow to pull out Itachi's pajamas.

"Oh. Okay." Itachi was barely awake as he changed, then climbed into bed. Madara turned off the light and walked over to a bookshelf next to the window. He stood there for a moment looking at the toys and books on the shelves, finally picking up the soccer ball. It had dirt and black scuff marks on it. Obviously it was well used.

Itachi was facing the window and watched as Madara held his soccer ball. But the person standing there was different somehow. Itachi was very tired, and Madara's figure kept blurring. Suddenly the figure was shorter and… "Obito." He said the word as he breathed out succumbed to sleep. Madara dropped the ball and looked at the boy, then disappeared.

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"I am in your living room. Come to me." The words echoed in Kentaro Uchiha's mind and he suddenly woke up out of a sound sleep. The 65 year old man slowly got out of bed so he wouldn't wake his wife Saiyu. He put a kimono on over his pajamas and made his way to his living room. He had been waiting for several days to speak to _him_ and was relieved he had finally come.

"Elder Kentaro. I trust you are well tonight." The man in the orange mask spoke in a strong, smooth voice as the elder knelt down respectfully in front of him.

"Yes. I am well. I am glad you have come. I have news for you." Kentaro spoke in an even voice. The man in front of him was very powerful and sign of weakness would not bode well at this stage in the game.

"You may stand up. I know sitting like that probably isn't good for your joints."

"I thank you, Lord Madara." He stood up. The living room was in darkness. Turning on a light could draw attention, and Madara wanted, no _needed_, to stay in the shadows.

"First, I need you to have a conversation with your clan leader. He badly injured his son this evening. It forced me to make early contact with Itachi. As you know I was not planning on making contact with him until after we make our move a year from now. However, the boy ran off and hid in the forest. If he had been left there in his injured state, and given his small size, he could have died of hypothermia within a few hours. This is unforgivable. He knows Itachi is the Uchiha prodigy and has been given a future prophesied by the old man, yet he acted carelessly and put his son's life in danger. When I returned Itachi to his home a few minutes ago, Fugaku was not there." He looked at the elders face. Kentaro dropped his gaze to the floor and closed his eyes. He had a very hard expression on his face. Madara continued.

"He has also done something to Mikoto to limit her chakra. She was unable to defend Itachi. He hit her, knocking her unconscious. She was able regain consciousness and go back into the house but she collapsed again and was unable to call for help. I lied to the boy and told him Kagura was with her so he wouldn't worry." He paused. "What is your news?" The old man looked up and when he opened his eyes his sharingan was visible. It helped him see in the dark.

"Mikoto believes Fugaku has done something to render himself either permanently or temporarily sterile. He refuses to have another child. Also…" A sound was coming from the hallway. They both watched as an orange tabby with glowing eyes walked into the living room and jumped on the couch without even looking at them. "Humph! Yeah, anyway. The Fourth is asking questions and we caught an ANBU in the temple yesterday. We are currently moving him to the Uchiha hide-out near the Valley of the End for interrogation. Did you want to handle the questioning yourself?"

"Yes I do. I will leave immediately and be there later today. Was there anything else?"

"No."

"Then, here are your orders. Right now, you will wake Kagura and take her to check on Mikoto and Itachi. You will then wait for Fugaku to arrive home and lecture him about his actions this evening. Remind him that he is not necessary to our plans. Which is why I will not be appearing to him myself. As always, do not let him know about me." He stood silently for a couple minutes as if considering something.

"We need a second child from Mikoto and it must be born before September. Her heritage is guaranteed to produce powerful children." Madara paused again, then cursed. "Dammit! Fugaku is proving to be as stupid as his father. Have him submit himself for a full examination. If he is indeed sterile…" Madara shook his head.

"You could father the child, Lord Madara. He would be more powerful than Itachi, in all probability." The elder spoke the words, but they soured his mouth. Mikoto would never cheat on her husband. It could only be done through trickery.

"I'd rather not resort to that. Our plans will be ruined without the second child though, so I'll keep it in mind. Fugaku is trying to drive us into a corner. He knows we need the two children. I know he has always had trouble controlling his anger, and more than likely he just lost his temper and took it out on his son and wife, but I also have to wonder if he truly tried to kill Itachi tonight." Madara looked at the floor as he spoke the last sentence very quietly. He looked up suddenly and raised his voice. "Let Fugaku know that if anything happens to wife, son, or future child he had better be dead before the interrogation squad at the Uchiha hideout get a hold of him. I will be passing orders on to them on what methods they will use should it be required. It will be painful, and it will last a very, very long time." His hands were clenched in tight fists by the time he finished talking. "I will also arrange to speak with Mikoto without raising suspicion. I want to gauge her state of mind away from her family to see if I can get any more hints into what could be going on."

Madara took a deep breath and sighed. He relaxed is arms and looked at the cat who was now sitting with her head on her paws watching the two men. He could sense it was just a regular, spoiled little housecat. He had always admired cats, they viewed the world in silence, learning all its secrets, but never letting on that they knew anything. He would have to do the same when he spoke with Mikoto. She truly was powerful kunoichi and could easily see through him if he messed up. He looked back at elder Kentaro.

"I will be training Itachi and Shisui on Saturday's." The old man gasped. He did not like the idea of Shisui joining the training, but knew it was pointless to complain. Madara continued to talk.

"About the Fourth. He knows too much for his own good, but he also has us backed into a corner somewhat. He suspects me, but he has no actual proof I exist. I am not sure how he found out, and I don't think he has told anyone. The man is definitely to be admired. He is intelligent, powerful, patient and shrewd. We cannot make a move against him without the whole village finding out and turning against us. We will continue with the plan. It is almost time for the clan gathering at the Uchiha Hideout. That would be an excellent opportunity for the Fourth to act. Either to infiltrate the gathering, or to snoop around the empty village. At the clan meeting tomorrow night bring up the subject of security and brainstorm some possible solutions with the other members. I will speak with you again Saturday night. Is any of this in any way unclear?" Kentaro felt Madara's sharingan boring holes into his soul and resisted the urge to shudder.

"No Lord Madara. Until Saturday evening then." He bowed as Madara disappeared.

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After telling his wife that he was going to see Kagura about a medical emergency at one of the other households he found himself 20 minutes later sitting in the clan leader's living room. Mikoto had a concussion and Kagura was currently taking her to the hospital. She was surprised to see the level of skill used to heal Itachi's arm. He refused to tell her who had healed it and when Kentaro told her not to worry about it, she took the hint and shut up.

When 5am came Fugaku still had not come home. Kentaro had no plans to leave anyway until he spoke to Kagura, and he wasn't about to leave a four-year-old alone in a house. She said she would return around 8am and take Itachi to stay with Kisa until Mikoto was released from the hospital. For some reason she did not want to leave Itachi alone with his father. Kentaro wondered what she knew, but since he already knew most of what was going on there was no need to press her about it. Kagura was curious about how he had known there was a problem, but he wouldn't tell her. She did seem pleased to see him there, though. It was clear that Kagura was worried about Mikoto and Itachi.

It was 6:40 when Kentaro heard someone opening the front door. He got up and greeted Fugaku.

"Good morning Fugaku. Where have you been?" He had activated his Sharingan and looked straight at the younger man.

"None of your business." Fugaku activated his own Sharingan and looked straight at the elder.

"Wrong answer." Kentaro said in a very ominous tone. "Now answer the question. Where have you been since you injured your son and wife last night." He started emanating a very strong chakra aura.

In the other room, Itachi woke up and looked out his bedroom door. He could see his father and the elder facing each other in the entry way.

"I went back to the police station, then for the last three hours I've been looking for Itachi."

"What were you going to do with him when you found him?"

"What exactly are you insinuating elder Kentaro? Have you forgotten that I am the clan leader and I do not have to answer to you?" He was getting angry again.

Kentaro looked down the hall, and seeing that Itachi was awake, motioned for him to come closer. He put his hand on the boys head and moved him closer to him then picked him up. He saw Fugaku looking at the boys arm. "As you can see, someone else, a _stranger_ he emphasized with mock distaste "found the boy, healed him, then brought him home." Fugaku's eyes went wide and he moved closer to the elder and the boy. "I brought Kagura over and she took Mikoto to the hospital. She has a concussion. Kagura will be by shortly to take Itachi to stay with Kisa until Mikoto is released because we can no longer trust you to be alone with your son." He could see Fugaku's resolve dropping. He actually believed that Fugaku loved his son and wife deeply, and the thought of loosing them, even for a couple days was not easy for him.

"I…understand. I didn't mean to… It's…just." Fugaku didn't know how to say what he was feeling. For the last few hours the look of fear in his son's face kept appearing over and over in his head.

"You need to bring yourself under control. This boy is very important to the future of the clan. As is his future sibling. If anything happens to either of them or Mikoto you had better be dead when we catch you because the Uchiha interrogation squad will not be kind to you."

"I understand. It will not happen again." He looked at his son as he spoke. The boy was very tired, but was still very alert. He was holding onto the elder's shirt very tightly and looking at the floor, but because he wasn't showing any emotion Fugaku wasn't sure if the boy was still scared or not. He reached over and stroked the boy's hair. He didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say. Itachi looked up at his father. He decided he liked Madara better. It wasn't that he hated his father, but he was always changing his mind and Itachi never knew what was going to happen next.

"Father, is it Saturday today?" Itachi asked quietly.

"No son, it's Thursday. Are you looking forward to your cartoons?" He knew how much Itachi enjoyed watching Saturday morning cartoons during breakfast.

"I…yes." The boy answered, then looked back down at the floor. A few seconds later he leaned in to the elder and laid his head on the man's shoulder.

"One more thing, Fugaku. You will submit yourself for a full physical examination at the hospital. You and Mikoto were asked to have a second child, and that has not happened yet. Know this – Mikoto will bear one more child. No matter what." The intensity of the elder's comments shocked Fugaku so bad he took a couple steps back and hit the wall.

"There is no need for an exam." Fugaku did not want to say the rest, and apparently the elder did not want to hear it.

"Please don't tell me you didn't…" The elder's voice became very quiet, "Do you have any idea what this means for Mikoto? We cannot back down from this."

"I…I'm so sorry. I never thought you would ask… I…who will be chosen to be…." He felt like beating his head against the wall. He had himself sterilized the day after Itachi was born, and now, his wife… He didn't want to think about it. Depression suddenly hit him and he had to strongly resist the urge to fall to the ground. Itachi turned his head to watch his father. He didn't understand what was going on.

"Do you really want to know? Perhaps we could do an artificial insemination. I'll have Kagura look into it."

"Is mother okay?" He asked.

"Yes." Fugaku tried to smile to his son "I did a lot of things I shouldn't have, and I…." He couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Your mother and father are going through a hard time now, Itachi, I know kids don't like to hear it, but its grown-up stuff and you wouldn't understand even if we explained it." The elder turned his head so he was looking at the boy. He put him down. "Go get dressed. Kagura will be here soon to take you to visit with Kisa and Shisui for a couple days." The boy walked back down the hall to his room and closed the door.

"Fugaku, are you okay?" The elder looked at the younger man with concern.

"No. I messed up badly. I don't know how to raise a son, or be a husband. I'm trying so hard not to be like my father, but instead I think I am exactly like him. I pray every day that Itachi won't be like me and my father, but I see more of myself in him and very little of Mikoto. As hard as it is to say, perhaps the second child should be someone else's…" He was looking down at the floor.

"Fugaku." The elder sighed and put a hand on his shoulder. "You father did have a lot of problems, no one will deny that. But what everyone who knew him will admit is that you are not lost like he was. It really looks to me like you are overcompensating. You are trying too hard to not be like a man you only knew for three years, a man you only heard stories about after those three years." He paused, then continued.

"Fugaku, you did mess up, but luckily all of your mistakes so far can be fixed, one way or another. But I must warn you, our plans in one year will be carried out _no matter what_, so please don't mess up again. If Itachi had been taken to the hospital, and they decided to file charges against you for child endangerment it would make it very easy for the Fourth to step in and stick his nose into our affairs even more-so than he is now. As it is Kagura will have to do a lot of manipulation to draw attention away from Mikoto's injuries, and the fact that she was wearing a chakra limiting bracelet." He looked at Fugaku as the younger man backed into the wall again. Kentaro shook his head.

"I have no idea why you put such a thing on your own wife, of all people, but know that it will not happen again. Her duty…her _sworn_ duty as mother of the clan heir is to protect him at all costs. I've known Mikoto her whole life. She is powerful and very dedicated. You have heard the rumors – we are a small clan – 'she is too good for you' they say. All I have to say about that is: Quit proving them right!" He practically spit out the last few words. "Now go to bed and get some sleep, you look like shit." He patted the man a couple time on the shoulder. Fugaku was looking at the floor, then nodded and walked down the hall to his room. He felt like the worlds biggest asshole, but he had a lot of respect for Kentaro. The man had always been there for him when he was growing up, acting as his surrogate father. And here he was again, filling that role still. For some reason, it made Fugaku feel a little less lonely.

Kentaro watched Fugaku until he entered his bedroom, then went back to the living room to wait for Kagura.

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Kagura came by later and collected a very sleepy Itachi. Mikoto had a concussion, but she also was suffering from mental exhaustion. The doctor wanted her to stay for at least three days so she could rest. She packed a suitcase for Itachi with his clothes, shurikens, soccer ball, a couple books, then realized he only lived down the road and if they needed anything Kisa could come down here and get it.

She missed not having Obito around and wished Itachi could stay with her, but she was working full time at the hospital again and didn't have time to watch a small boy during the day. He would still end up staying with Kisa anyway. Kagura was going to be very busy for the next week fixing Fugaku's "error in judgment" and it was up to her to figure out a way around it. She was one of the few people who knew why Itachi and the soon-to-be baby were important and she was going to do anything the elder said to make sure the clan stayed on its path.

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**The plot thickens…**

**Yes, Fugaku has a lot of issues.**

**The next chapter – training with Madara begins. Exactly how does a seven-year-old boy get permission to take his four-year-old cousin out for picnic all day? More about the Uchiha gathering at the Valley of the End, and the solution to Fugaku's little "lapse in judgement". **

**Be sure to add the story to "story alerts" so you don't miss it. Please review if you can.**

Page 15


	4. Chapter 4 Madara

**In the last chapter Itachi suffered a broken arm after an attack from his father. Escaping into the woods outside of Konoha he is befriended and healed by the mysterious masked stranger he had seen earlier by the lake. The man introduced himself as Madara Uchiha and offered to train Itachi and Shisui. We were also introduced to the elder Kentaro who is part of Madera's inner circle. We also learned that the Fourth is suspicious of the Uchiha clan for some reason and sent an Anbu to collect information. The Anbu was captured, and Madera is planning on interrogating him. Itachi's mother was also injured in the attack and is in the hospital – but Madera's plans for her are a little more involved.**

**Thank-you for the review! More reviews are always welcome, from everyone.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto**

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**Chapter 4 –Madara**

Itachi spent most of Thursday asleep. Kisa woke him up a couple times to eat, but he was so tired that she could barely get a few spoonfuls of rice in him, and getting him to drink water was just as difficult. When Shisui came home from school she sent him to the hospital to ask Kagura to come by when her shift ended. When Kagura showed up a little after 5pm she said that the boy was becoming dehydrated and told her to wake him up and keep him awake for another 4 or 5 hours, and make him drink some water every hour.

"So what happened? You didn't say anything when you dropped him off this morning? How is Mikoto?" Kisa was very worried. She had a few suspicions about what was going on in the clan leader's household, but was afraid to say anything. Gossip from the side-branch was inevitable, but was still looked down on, and she was very nervous about asking Kagura – a member of the main branch – questions about Mikoto and Itachi.

"When Itachi fell off the porch Mikoto tried to grab him and tripped, also falling off the porch, and hit her head." Kagura kept her voice normal and looked Kisa straight in the eye.

"I see. I…" Kisa paused, wondering if she should say anything.

"Kisa," Kagura's voice dropped and she put her hand on the other woman's shoulder "just watch over Itachi for a few days. It'll be okay. We may need to keep Mikoto in the hospital for a few more days, we'll know for sure tomorrow. Also, I am hoping that Fugaku comes to visit his son. Let me know one way or another."

"I understand." She smiled half-heartedly. She guessed what had happened. Fugaku had attacked his wife and son. She wondered about Itachi's concussion a few months earlier and suddenly felt sick. "So why do we have to keep Itachi awake?"

"He has been sleeping all day mostly because of shock. It's normal. However, he needs to drink some water, eat a little food and most importantly, wake up. The problem with sleeping all day is often it means you are awake all night. Not a good combination in a child." Kagura gave a small laugh when she remembered Obito running around in the middle of the night playing – loudly. He was never a subtle child.

"Ah. Good point. I should have thought of that. Shisui did that two years ago when he suddenly decided at 2am he no longer had the flu. The first thing I thought when I woke up was that a drunken burglar had broken into the house." She smiled at the memory.

Half an hour later Kagura said her good-byes and instead of going home, walked down to the lake. She sat down on a bench and sighed. It was dark out and even though it was only 6pm the Uchiha clan compound was quiet. There was a meeting tonight and she would have to attend. Ever since her son had died she had chosen to take a more active role in the clan's affairs. Elder Kentaro had taken her into the inner circle with no questions asked.

Kagura was one of the most skilled medic-nin's in Konoha, and her ties with the hospital were above reproach. She was proving to be an invaluable resource. But she felt like she was betraying her friends. She had just lied to Kisa (even though Kisa understood the reason, and probably saw through to the truth) and soon she would have to lie to Mikoto and Fugaku. That would be the worst lie of all. The birth of their second child would be the lie she could not live with.

"But I must do this. I must protect my clan. I must protect my son's memory." But no matter how many times she repeated it, one small fact kept repeating itself over and over in her mind: "Obito would never have approved."

When she felt like moving again, it was four hours later and she noticed she had only five minute to get to the meeting. She took off running.

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On Friday morning Itachi told Shisui he wanted them to go outside the Konoha gates and train all day Saturday. Shisui told him that he would like to go, but their parents would never approve, however Itachi was so adamant that he soon had his cousin talked into it. When Shisui came home from school at 3:30 they skipped their cartoons so they could plot a way to convince their parents to let them go. They worked very hard to come up with a reason for a 4 year old and 7 year old to leave the house by themselves for an entire day. They decided that since Shisui had just turned 7 he must be pretty grown up and maybe they could use that as part of the reason. The next part of the plan involved mentioning the fact that Shisui was first in his class. However, they still didn't think that would be enough to let Shisui's mother and Itachi's father approve of two boys going off on their own.

Kisa came into Shisui's room around 6pm and told them dinner would be ready in thirty minutes, and they would be eating the dining room instead of the kitchen. She made them put on clean clothes, brush their hair and wash up. When the boys finally entered the dining room they found that elder Kentaro and his wife Saiyu, and Fugaku were joining them for dinner. Both Itachi and Shisui bowed to the three dinner guests then sat down. Shisui sat between his mother Kisa and father Toshiro on one side of the table, Saiyu and Itachi sat on the other side of the table while Fugaku and Kentaro sat at either end.

"How is your arm, Itachi?" Fugaku put his hand on his sons head as he asked, tilting it slightly so he could see into the boys eyes.

"It stopped hurting, but Kagura won't let me take the bandages off. She said the bone has to get stronger." It was also a little inconvenient since he couldn't do any rough-housing with his cousin as Kagura was afraid it would break again.

"I know. It'll be okay. I was talking to Kisa and it sounds like you are having lots of fun. Mother has to stay in the hospital until the middle of next week, so you will be staying here a little longer. I have to leave the village for a couple days and collect another deserter so I wanted to come by tonight and see you first. You can go see your mother on Monday morning during visiting hours. Kagura and Kisa will take you, but you have to be quiet and respectful of the other people in the hospital, okay?" In the perverted way of fate, as soon as he went back to work Thursday afternoon the Fourth Hokage sent word that three of the eight teams that were sent on a mission to collect information about the enemy's battle strategies had deserted. They retrieved all but one person, and the Fourth decided to have the police track and retrieve the last one.

Itachi was suddenly excited "Are you going to tell me about the retrieval when you get back?" His eyes were wide with excitement.

"Yes, of course." Fugaku smirked. Itachi could get pretty excited over battle stories. Well, the guy they were after was rumored to be a spy so maybe there would actually be a battle this time. Usually though, when the defectors found themselves face to face with four Uchiha's they surrendered without a fight.

"So how come I can't see Mother before Monday?" Itachi asked.

"She's really tired. She hasn't been feeling well for a while. Also, Kagura is performing some tests on her that will take until next week." The truth was that they were determining if artificial insemination could be used to make her pregnant, but that was a little hard to explain to a small child. Fugaku didn't really understand the whole process either. When Kagura offered to explain it in more detail he just waved his hand and told her to let him know if it worked or not. Oddly enough, Mikoto had said the same thing to Kagura an hour earlier. "Why don't you go shopping before visiting her and buy her a present and some flowers?"

"Yes!" Itachi showed a big smile and nodded his head. Everyone laughed at him.

"Well, he either loves his mother, or he loves shopping." Saiyu laughed.

"Both, I think." Kisa smiled as she spoke. "It can be hard to get him out of a store, he has to look at everything, and he has such a good memory that he's actually a big help at finding stuff."

Kentaro looked at the two boys as they ate their dinner. "So, Itachi, Shisui, what are you two doing this Saturday. It's going to be a sunny autumn day, you should get out and explore!"

"Oh, I am too busy to take them anywhere Saturday. I have to prepare for the Uchiha gathering." Kisa said with a frown.

"Oh mother, can't we go by ourselves?" Shisui decided to take Kentaro's suggestion as a starting point for their argument.

"Shisui, you and Itachi are still too young."

"I'm seven years old and the top student in my class; I can defend Itachi. Besides, they taught us at school how to get away if a more experienced shinobi attacks us." He said all this in a conversational, matter-of-fact voice.

"We promise we won't go more than a half mile outside the village gate." Itachi added in the same tone of voice. Fugaku caught Kentaro's eye, wondering what he was up to. He had a stern expression on his face.

'So he wants Itachi and Shisui to be by themselves for a while.' Fugaku thought to himself as he sighed and looked down at his almost-empty plate. "I don't mind." Fugaku said out loud. "I know for a fact how fast Itachi can run and how well he hides, and I also know what the training Shisui is being given at the academy entails. As long as they return by dinner time. However, Itachi, I don't want you to leave Shisui's side. He is more experienced than you, and if you are in a bind you are to do exactly what he says. Does that sound okay, Toshiro and Kisa?" He smiled at the couple and they smiled back.

"It sounds like a great plan. Do you two boys understand the rules, then? Stay within a half mile of the Konoha gate, and Shisui will be responsible if anything bad happens." Kisa repeated Fugaku to emphasize the importance of the rules.

"Yes!" Both boys said at the same time.

"Can you make us lunch?" Shisui asked. He had a huge grin on his face. He was going to show everyone how responsible he was, and have a lot of fun at the same time.

"Yes, of course." She laughed at her son's enthusiasm.

Kentaro and his wife smiled at each other. Their daughter was 44 now, but they still remembered how enthusiastic she could get about the simplest things when she was a small child. He actually didn't think it would be this easy to convince Fugaku, Toshiro and Kisa to let the boys out alone, but Fugaku was very perceptive and when he had caught Kentaro's eye earlier he saw that he was up to something. Due to the lecture the previous day, he was also not in much of position to go against anything Kentaro said, either.

He knew Kisa and Toshiro felt better at the thought that the boys would run and hide if an enemy shinobi showed up, instead of attacking. They were years away from being able to do that. He chuckled to himself. 'I knew they wouldn't be able to think up something on their own. Well, if nothing happens tomorrow, then there should be no problem with them doing this every week. They won't really be alone anyway, Madara will be with them, and since he needs both boys he will protect them.'

Kentaro suddenly frowned and his expression turned dark as he looked at the happy Shisui. 'Two boys, best friends, I know what you are up to Madara, and the results had better be worth it. We don't have any more children to spare.'

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The next morning the boys got up early and ate breakfast in front of the TV while Kisa cursed the fates for putting Saturday morning cartoons on at 7am. 'Why is it so hard to get Shisui up early for school, yet he can get up on his own for a silly cartoon?' She was still very tired. After Fugaku left for his mission, the elder and his wife stayed and Kisa and Toshiro spent the rest of the evening with them talking. Their daughter had married Toshiro's oldest brother and had two children, both in their 20's, so they actually had a lot to talk about.

As she made the boys their box lunches she started to get a little nervous about letting them out on their own. Shisui was the only child she would ever have and she didn't want to loose him. Itachi was like a little brother to Shisui and she knew he would never forgive himself if anything happened to the younger boy.

"Well", Kisa said out loud "I have to just trust them and let them go. But if they are one second late for dinner I'm mobilizing the entire Uchiha compound to find them."

"Mother, why are you talking to yourself again?" Shisui asked with a curious expression on his face. Itachi just looked up at her with his usual poker-face.

"Because mommy is insane sweetie." She answered airily. She laughed as both boys' eyes opened wide and they stepped back. "I'm just teasing. Now go get your backpacks and your jackets and you can be off." The boys looked at her one last time, then ran to Shisui's bedroom to collect their stuff.

Itachi and Shisui were outside the Konoha gate a little after 9am. The guard had stopped them and asked what their business was. He made them write their names in a book, along with the time they were leaving, who their parents were, and what time they were expected back. In reality the guard was a little leery about letting two small children outside, but since their backpacks only contained box lunches he decided they weren't trying to run away from home and let them through. He then put a note up on the watch board for the afternoon shift to call the children's parents if they did not come back by 5pm.

It was a very sunny day and the last week of October. While most of the trees were bare, there were still enough leaves left to cast shadows on the road as a mild wind blew from the South. The angle of the sun created very vibrant colors, and the dew left from the previous night glistened all around them. It was the kind of morning that made you feel like everything you want to happen, would happen.

Itachi had been watching as they walked for the spot where he had run off the road a few days earlier. He stopped walking and looked at a small path. This was it.

"Shisui." he called to the boy, "Let's take this path." Without waiting to see if Shisui would follow he walked onto the path and into the woods.

"Wow! Look at that moss!" Shisui reached up and grabbed a handful of the moss hanging from a branch of one of the trees as they passed under it. "Oh! Look at all the bugs in the moss! Cool!" Itachi stopped and the two of them poked at the bugs for a few minutes. The sound of a man laughing behind them startled them out of their "investigation" and they quickly turned around.

"Never underestimate the power of bugs to distract a boy." Shisui looked up and saw a man, well over 6 feet tall, dressed in black and wearing an orange and black mask. He immediately grabbed Itachi's hand.

"Run Itachi!" He yelled, but Itachi pulled back on his hand and Shisui landed on his rear end.

"It's okay Shisui, he's a friend. He invited us here today."

"But, Itachi, we aren't supposed to talk to strangers, and he isn't even wearing a forehead protector. Strangers always say they are your friend to get you to go with them. Then they kill you!" Shisui remembered a classmate two months after he had started school that had been lured away and killed. It had really scared everyone in the class.

The man knelt down so he was close to eye level with Shisui (who was still on his rear in the dirt) and activated his sharingan. "You do not need to be afraid of me, Shisui. I am a relative of you and Itachi. My name is Madara Uchiha." He reached out to Shisui with his hand but Shisui scooted back a foot. He still had a hold of Itachi's hand, and the boy nearly tripped when Shisui moved.

"It's okay Shisui, he's the one who healed my arm when I ran away. Then he brought me home." Itachi knelt down next to his friend.

"You…you ran away? I though you broke it by falling off the porch." Shisui was really confused. But Itachi was looking at the ground, a little depressed. He didn't like to think about what had happened.

"I…" he stopped. He didn't want to talk about it.

"Perhaps you should tell him what really happened. Friends share good things and bad things." Madara urged. He expected Shisui to be reluctant so he was willing to be patient. He would rather win the boy over with kindness, than force.

"I…" his voice was very soft. "Father broke my arm. He got mad at me and grabbed my arm really tight then threw me across the yard. I ran away and ended up here in the woods. Madara found me and healed my arm then took me home." His voice had been dropping as he spoke and the last bit was so low that Shisui and Madara only heard it because they were so close to him. Shisui's eyes and mouth were wide open with shock.

"Lord Fugaku…I…he…are you okay?" Shisui let go of Itachi's hand and sat up on his haunches so he could look closer at his friend. "I knew he was different from my father, not as friendly, but I never thought he would do _that_." He looked up at Madara, then got down on his knees and put his head on the ground "Thank you for healing my friend and looking after him. I apologize for what I said earlier."

"Thank-you for healing me." Itachi copied Shisui, and spoke in a normal voice. He wanted to say more, but he didn't know what. The man reached down, grabbed each boy around the middle and started carrying them further down the trail.

"Only doing my duty!" He said in a deep, cheery voice. "And you, Shisui, were doing yours by protecting Itachi, you are to be commended." He put them back on their feet when he reached a large clearing and they looked up at him with big grins on their faces.

"Now!" Let's do some warm-up exercises and then we'll practice some kicks." The kids put their backpacks at the base of a tree and then spaced themselves so they could do some Taijutsu warm-ups.

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As the two boys walked back home that night they had only one thought in their heads: "Madara was the greatest teacher ever." They hadn't done any one-on-one fighting because Itachi's arm needed to heal, but they had learned some new Taijutsu moves that involved kicking and jumping. Also, while Madara turned out to be a strict instructor who expected his instructions to be followed, he didn't get mad if he had to explain something five times, or if it took you thirty tries to get it right. For Itachi, the training session was the best one he had ever had. Shisui was wondering if he would be able to take the graduation exam next year when he was eight. He wasn't planning on trying until he was ten, but with the extra instruction, maybe it was possible.

"So did you boys have a good time?" Toshiro asked as the boys entered the living room. He was sitting on the floor in front of the sliding glass doors looking into their small garden. There were several notebooks and ink brushes scattered around him.

"Yes! We can hardly wait to go again next weekend." Shisui answered.

"So what did you do?"

"We practiced Taijutsu and looked at bugs." Itachi answered.

"Hmm. That sounds a lot more fun than what I've been doing all day. Oh well, at least I didn't have to go into the office. This is a much better view." He looked back at the garden. It was bare because of the season, plus instead of grass they had placed gravel and sand to form a meditation garden. A small koi pond was placed in the center. "Even in the bleakest of months it is still beautiful."

"You were writing Haiku's instead of working, weren't you?" Shisui asked accusingly.

"Ah! Caught red handed!" He laughed at his son. "Actually, Kisa and I are in charge of plotting out the housing arrangements for the gathering."

"Does Itachi get to go this year?" Itachi lifted his head and crossed his fingers when Shisui asked. He really wanted to go. Last year, though, his mother didn't want him traveling that far because she thought he was too young.

"Yes. Lord Fugaku and Lady Mikoto said he could go. In fact, every single Uchiha, no matter where they live is required to attend the gathering this year."

"Yes! I get to go!" Itachi was very excited and gave a big smile.

"Now, you boys come over here and I'll read you some of the Haiku's I wrote today."

"Okay." They were in such a good mood that he could have offered to read them the first twelve-hundred pages of the Konoha trade regulations manual and they wouldn't have complained.

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It was 11:20pm, Saturday night. Elder Kentaro opened the secret door in the Uchiha temple and walked down the stairs. He had received the summons from Madara fifteen minutes earlier and had rushed to the temple to meet with him. He could see candle light at the bottom of the stairs and walked toward it. When got within six feet of Madara he knelt down and greeted him.

"Lord Madara I have news for you."

"Good. I also have some news for you." Madara motioned for the old man to stand up.

"I take it you got the information you needed from the captured Anbu?" Kentaro had been hoping Madara would come back with something they could use.

"I got some information, but as usual it leaves more questions than answers. While Anbu are elite they are not privy to the workings of the Hokage's mind." The masked man sounded a little impatient. "Basically, the Hokage knows that someone was in the forbidden library. Since the founding of Konoha, the only people allowed in the library are the Hokages only. There are powerful jutsus placed on the room to prevent unauthorized entry, put there by the First Hokage."

"But, we know about all the jutsus. When our people entered they bypassed all of them correctly. They sensed no more seals or jutsus. What happened?" Kentaro was very concerned. His red eyes flashed in the semi-darkness as he looked at Madara.

"The bastard Fourth is truly a powerful adversary. He was able to add additional seals to the room that were not detectable. I went up and looked myself. There are thirty-four additional seals in the room, and every scroll has a seal on it that can tell the owner the last time it was opened." Madara was very agitated now and walked around the altar, finally banging his fist down on it. "He knows which scrolls were looked at!" The last sentence was a loud hiss. Kentaro let out a low growl. This was the worst possible news.

"How come they did not sense the additional seals?" Kentaro was very mad and the words came out from between his clenched teeth. The men sent in had been experienced Sharingan users. Their job was to enter the Forbidden library and read several scrolls. The Sharingan had the ability to memorize jutsus, so that when they returned to the Uchiha temple the men were able to create exact copies of the scrolls. The copies were then transported to the Uchiha hideout for safe keeping.

"I couldn't see them either until I activated the Mangekyo Sharingan. It's not their fault. I underestimated the Fourth's ability. But not anymore. His abilities put the first three Hokages to shame. I will enjoy killing him." Madara was clenching his right fist in front of him as he spoke the words. He suddenly moved his fist in a slashing movement in front of him and paced around the altar again. When he spoke again his voice was no longer angry.

"What of Fugaku and his problem."

"He is sterile. Kagura ran some tests and confirmed it. Lord Madara," Kentaro knelt down again and bent his head forward, steeling himself for what he was about to say, "your council requests that you provide the seed that will bring the second child into this world." Madara stood very still and looked at the kneeling man. "Kagura has assured us that the fertility clinic at the hospital can take care of an artificial insemination technique. Mikoto need never know the child is not Fugaku's. Fugaku himself does not need to be told anything either. He does not know yet about the test results. He suspects the truth, but he will do what I tell him. There should be…no….there _will_ be no complications. A second child will be born before September next year."

"This is why I did not want Fugaku on my council. He is an incompetent short sighted fool." Madara was not in a good mood. His chakra was emanating in dark, powerful bursts. Kentaro was used to it, having spent the last fifty years as a ninja, and didn't even cringe. Madara sighed heavily then motioned for Kentaro to stand up again. "I will comply with my council's request."

"We thank you." Kentaro gave a forced smile. He then reached into an inner pocket in his cloak and pulled out a large envelope. "Kagura has provided instructions in this envelope. If you can provide the sample requested by tomorrow, Kagura has already arranged an appointment for Mikoto on Monday afternoon. The jutsu used in the process will provide results by Wednesday, and if all is well she will be released from the hospital that day also." He paused and looked at Madara. He was staring at the unopened envelope. "Do you have any preference, boy or girl?"

"No. Both are good." He put the envelope in an inside pocket. "I trained with Itachi and Shisui today. Both boys are almost equal in their potential. I was surprised. I expected Itachi to be powerful, but Shisui could very easily come to match Itachi in ability. Unfortunately he doesn't have the same drive that Itachi does, so he may not actually reach his potential. Fortunately that doesn't matter. I am doing this for Itachi. His abilities come first. I am aiming to have him graduate from the academy at 7 years old. I have plans for him at that time."

Madara stood straight again. "That is all for today. I will call you again tomorrow to turn over the sample."

Before Kentaro could say anything Madara had disappeared. He stood for a few minutes mindlessly looking at the designs painted on the walls surrounding the altar, then used a jutsu to extinguish the torches. The darkness was overwhelming, but his Sharingan provided him the means to exit safely.

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Monday morning Kisa, Kagura and Itachi walked Shisui to school and waved to him as he disappeared into the building. Shisui was disappointed at not being able to go visit Mikoto in the hospital, but he felt better when Kisa had the two boys draw get-well cards the previous night. They walked to a small jewelry store and Itachi ran inside and started looking at a display case in the center of the store. His mother loved coming into this store. She always looked at this particular display case first. It housed birthstone jewelry. The pretty stones glittered in the morning sunlight and he looked at a particular necklace that had a cone shaped pendant hanging off of it.

"Do you like that necklace?" The jewelry store manager had come up and stood opposite Itachi. "It is a very fine piece. It is actually the birthstone for November, yellow topaz."

"It's pretty. Do you have earrings? Mother likes earrings." Itachi looked up at the man, his eyes squinting in the sunlight.

"We have some selections. How much are you looking at spending?"

Kisa interrupted "This will go on Fugaku Uchiha's account. It is a gift for his wife."

"Ah! Then I shall show you some dangle earrings. She seems to buy that kind most often." He reached behind a counter and pulled out a black velvet box with several yellow topaz earrings attached to it.

"Can we look at them over here?" Itachi was still standing in the sun.

"Yes of course. The young man has a good sense for jewelry."

The box was placed on top of the display case in front of Itachi. He looked at the earrings and chose a pair that had one stone attached to a thin silver chain. It wasn't faceted, it was just a plain raw stone.

"The young man likes simple things. Good. Good. I'll just put these in a small gift box and you can be on your way." Itachi watched as the man put the earrings in a small box and wrapped it perfectly. When he was handed the box he looked it over, noticing the folds and the placement of the tape. Kisa and Kagura looked at him curiously as he made his examination, then looked at each other and shrugged. A four-year-old perfectionist was not something you saw everyday.

The flower shop was the next stop. They entered the shop and Itachi stopped dead in his tracks, looking at the sales lady. She looked different than she did the last time he came here with his mother. He pointed his finger at the woman then looked up, alarmed "Kagura! What's wrong with her stomach!"

Everyone in the store laughed. Itachi was dumbstruck. The sales lady walked over to Itachi and put her hand on his head as she tried to compose herself. "Oh dear. Itachi, it's nice to see you too." She fought back another snicker, then continued. "I'm going to have a baby soon. There's a baby growing inside me." The blond woman looked down at the boy with a big smile. "Come back in three months and you can see her."

"Okay." It was all Itachi could force out. How did a baby get inside this woman?

"Itachi, did you want to pick out some flowers for you mother?" Kagura leaned down and looked at him. She had a big smile on her face.

"Oh! Yes." He turned around and glanced at the shop. He then started walking down some of the isles, looking closely at the flowers. Kagura and Kisa talked with the shop owner while he browsed.

"I want these!" He said as he pointed at some daylilies that were yellow with brown stripes. "They match the earrings."

The three women looked at him. It was their turn to be dumbstruck. The boy was matching the jewelry and flowers? The saleslady walked over to him with a small bag and lifted one out of the bucket.

"I want two. One from me and one from father."

"Okay, two it is." She picked up a second flower and wrapped them up. Kisa handed her some money and they left the shop.

When they entered the hospital Itachi was fascinated. There was a lot to look at. Rows of chairs were half full of people in varying stages of fitness – bandages, upset stomachs, more women with fat stomachs (babies? Itachi wondered), and a few people who didn't look sick at all. There was a long table with women in white dresses standing behind it. There was a tall cabinet behind them loaded with folders. There was also a small area in a corner that had toys and child-sized furniture, although at the moment no children were playing there. A TV droned a mid-morning soap opera and a couple of the fat-stomached ladies were watching it with bland expressions on their faces.

"Itachi!" A girl's voice called out to him, and suddenly two arms were wrapped around his chest. "I haven't seen you in so long!"

"Rin. Hi!" Itachi smiled up at her as she released him and returned the smile.

"How have you been? I heard you fell off the porch. How is your arm doing?"

"It feels find, but Kagura won't let me take the bandages off."

"Oh, too bad. Well, they'll come off soon enough, no worries! Well, I have to check up on some people on the fourth floor. See you later, Itachi. Nice to see you Kisa, and Kagura." She ran off toward the stairwell then turned around quickly and ran back to the seating area and approached a very old man. "Tomoaki! You are supposed to be upstairs in bed, whatever are you doing down here. Now come with me and I'll put you back to bed." She suddenly grabbed his hand "And no pinching the girls on the way up!" She held onto his arm and slowly walked him to the elevator.

"What a busy girl." Kisa said "I'm almost out breath just watching her with all that energy. How do you keep up?"

"I get 12 hours of sleep every night, that's how." Kagura laughed. Rin did have a lot of energy, and she could see how Obito came to like her so much. "Well, let's go see your mother, Itachi." She walked towards the stairwell and opened the door so Kisa and Itachi could pass through. "She is on the second floor."

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Mikoto had given Itachi a big hug as soon as he came in the door. She had been pacing around the room, bored out of her head. She loved the flowers and the earrings, and complimented him on the match. He gave her the get-well cards he and Shisui and had made and she sat them on the small table next to her bed. They stayed for a couple hours, then Kisa took Itachi home while Kagura stayed behind.

"Thank-you for bringing Itachi. I really miss him." Mikoto smiled at Kagura. "You've been such a great friend, I really appreciate everything you've done for me. And finding a way for Fugaku and I to have another baby…" she took Kagura's hands in her own and looked Kagura in the eye "Thank-you for everything."

"You are my best friend, Mikoto, of course I would do anything for you." She paused for a moment, then stood up "You're going to have to skip lunch today, but your appointment is in another hour, and you can eat afterward if you want. I better go see what Rin is up to. I'll be back soon." She gave Mikoto a big smile and walked out of the room.

Closing the door, Kagura ran down the hall into the bathroom and started splashing cold water on her face. She felt like the biggest looser in the history of the earth for lying to her friend. The baby would not be Fugaku's.

"I'm so sorry, Obito." She said out loud. "I'm doing things you would never do. Things I am ashamed of. I'm so sorry."

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The fertility procedure went perfectly. December came and Mikoto was one month pregnant. Itachi was still trying to wrap his head around the fact women had babies in their stomachs, and Fugaku was busy preparing for the Uchiha gathering planned in January. In other words, things were pretty much back to normal in the house.

Except that the supply of herbs was running low. Most could purchased in the stores, but one herb in particular was used by the Uchiha clan and grew in the forest. Mikoto decided to leave Itachi with Kisa and go by herself. She really wanted a couple hours to herself for some reason. Well, it was probably the hormones from the pregnancy messing with her mind. But, oh well, a couple hours alone was always a treat.

Mikoto made her way outside of the Konoha gates and walked a couple miles down the road, then turned into the woods, following a small trail. The trees here were massive, with the trunks bigger than most houses. She walked around the bases of several trees, carefully looking at the ground. The herb was notoriously hard to find, but it was an evergreen plant that was hardy even in freezing temperatures so there should still be some left in December.

"Does the pretty lady need help?" A high pitched male voice along with a small chakra signature suddenly appeared behind her. She turned around quickly, activating her Sharingan.

"Who are you?" She challenged him. Then she looked at him a little closer. He was tall, clothed completely in black, and wore an orange and black mask in a swirl pattern with only the left eye visible.

"Oh! Tobi scared the pretty lady. Tobi is sorry." He bowed as he apologized. Mikoto relaxed as she sensed he had very little chakra, and was a little dim-witted. She didn't feel he was a threat.

"That's okay…you said your name was Tobi?

"Yes! Tobi! What is the pretty ladies name, if I may ask?" He was very polite.

"I am Mikoto Uchiha." She turned off her Sharingan. "What are you doing out here in the woods? Are you with your friends?" She wondered if he should out here alone. Maybe he was lost?

"I live here now. My friends take care of me. I go for a walk every day. Tobi never gets lost. What is Mikoto doing out here alone?"

"I'm looking for an herb. We use it for tea."

"Oh! So Mikoto is married?"

"Yes, I have a husband and one son, and another baby is coming in July." She smiled at him. The man was very nice.

"I bet your son is looking forward to his new brother or sister."

Mikoto gave a short laugh. "He is, but he can't quite grasp the fact that the baby is in my stomach. He'll be five in three months, so maybe he's just too young."

"Maybe." He laughed also. "So is he home with your husband now?" Tobi looked into Mikoto's eyes. His arms were hanging at his side, but he slowly raised on hand. She saw it out of the corner of her eye. His one visible eye turned from dark brown to red, but it wasn't Sharingan. Mikoto gasped. Mangekyou. Out of the corner of her eye she also saw his index finger move up a couple inches.

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The sky was red. The ground was red. There were no trees, no mountains, no rocks. Just the sky and the ground. Tobi appeared in front of her.

"Who are you really!" She yelled at him. "The Mangekyo Sharingan is forbidden. What do you want!"

"Tobi wants to ask you some questions." The man's voice was still high pitched and very polite. He stood about twelve feet from her and made no indication that he would move closer.

Madara had decided to use "Tobi" to speak with Mikoto so he wouldn't alarm her too much. He needed to know some things about her. After all, she was carrying his child.

"Has Fugaku struck you or Itachi since the incident in November?"

Mikoto gasped. "How did you know about that?"

"Please, Mikoto, answer the question. While the realm of the Mangekyou can be used for torture I will not do that to you. Today, it is just a convenient place for a pleasant conversation."

She decided to cooperate with him in order to see where the conversation was going. She didn't want to hurt her baby and struggling could do just that. "N…No. He hasn't. He's been…very polite and he has re-structured his lessons with Itachi so that they don't get out of hand." Mikoto was getting nervous. Was this man stalking her family?

"How does he feel about Itachi?"

"He loves him very much. He wants him to be a strong clan leader, and is willing to do anything to get him there."

"How does Itachi feel about his father?" The man was asking the questions in his "Tobi" voice, but he never moved. Because she could not see his face it was almost like talking to a mannequin.

"Itachi…he…he is more distant toward his father than he used to be. Although they were…they were…never close. Itachi has become very formal and treats his father like a guest instead of a member of the family. Fugaku compliments him on his good manners."

"Could that be contributing to Itachi's lack of emotion?" Madera had wondered occasionally why Itachi didn't have the same type of nervous energy as other four-year-olds.

"Lack of emotion?" Mikoto was confused, "What do you mean? He gets excited when he gets candy or gifts or plays soccer. He isn't like his cousin, but then he takes after his father and Fugaku isn't especially emotional." Is this man saying there is something wrong with Itachi?

"You answered the question. What does Fugaku think of the baby?"

"He is excited, more excited than when Itachi was coming actually." She frowned a little. The difference in attitude had been bothering her. "I think he just had a bunch of problems and he finally made peace with some of his issues."

Madara almost snorted in disagreement, but stopped himself. So. He already prefers a child not his own, over one of his own flesh and blood.

"Mikoto, one last question. Are you happy?"

"Yes. I have a husband and two children. I am serving my clan."

"But Mikoto, doing your duty is not the same as being happy."

Mikoto swallowed hard and stared at the man. She thought she was happy. There is always a lot to worry about, from day to day matters, like how to stretch a half pound of meat for three people, to more important things like what would happen if Fugaku were killed on a mission. But worrying was not the same thing as being unhappy. Was it?

"I am an Uchiha. I am serving my clan by protecting my children. We have a destiny above and beyond that of ordinary man. That, in and of itself is the definition of happiness in the Uchiha clan." She spoke in a strong and sure voice. "I will not allow you to question my motives. Now release me."

"Ha ha ha!" Madara laughed at her good naturedly. "The pretty lady has a lot of pride. I am pleased. Very well, I will release you."

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Madara looked down at the sleeping woman. He placed the herbs in her bag and stood up.

Switching back to his normal voice he spoke, "Mikoto you are beautiful, but naïve. If you knew what the real Uchiha destiny was, would you still feel the same? Itachi is not a normal child. He is a genius. He displays very little emotion. I believe he has inherited some other qualities from his grandfather. These unique traits make him perfect for my plans. Fugaku is afraid of him. I call him a fool, but his is not. He is, in fact, much more perceptive than most give him credit for. He knows exactly what Itachi is. But I wonder…has he been able to admit the whole truth to himself yet?"

Madara bent down next to Mikoto again and brushed her hair out of her face. "You will remember none of what has happened here. You will wake up from a nap with a memory of picking the herbs then growing tired." He held a lock of her hair in his hand then spoke again. "The child is a boy, I can sense his chakra. You will name him Sasuke."

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**Okay – review. A lot of people have read the last three chapters, so someone must have some kind of opinion. **

**Madara is definitely up to something. Poor Itachi, Madara appears to have his life already mapped out for him. But at least he got the first four years to himself. It sounds like Sasuke isn't even going to get that…or is he? Stay tuned – next week is the Uchiha clan gathering at the super-, ultra-, mega-secret Uchiha hideout (you know, the one with the 100 foot blinking neon sign next to it). I was going to put it in this chapter, but decided to give it focus in its own chapter. There will be spies sent by the Fourth to add some action, so stick it in your story alert and you'll get a nice happy e-mail when it posts. **

**Some things coming up in future chapters:**

**Itachi turns 5 in March, then starts the academy in the summer quarter, right as Sasuke is born. More detail about the training with Madara. Also, what exactly is going to happen in the September – October timeframe? Itachi meets his classmates – including a boy that will be a pivotal character in the story. And…an encounter with a Hyuuga? What's that about?**

**Did you see Itachi on his throne in the latest manga chapter 380! Ahhhh! Gorgeous! **

**By the way, I will update every Friday.**


	5. Chapter 5 The Gathering

**In the previous chapter: Itachi and Shisui had their first training session with Madara and were very happy with the results. Mikoto is now pregnant. Fugaku knows the child is not his and doesn't mind. Mikoto thinks it is Fugaku's child. Neither knows the father is really Madara. Kagura is feeling remorse and guilt for lying to Mikoto and Fugaku about the baby. Kentaro and Madara discussed the Fourth Hokage's growing suspicions and Madara reveals that he wants to kill the Fourth.**

**Sorry, the chapter is too long, I have to split it up so I left a cliffhanger. **

**Please review! If you do Itachi will share his candy with you… AND if I get three more reviews I will post chapter 6 early. It's finished and ready to go. Which means next Friday will be chapter 7. Don't worry, I won't hold you hostage for reviews – I like the story too much and I can hardly wait to write more of it. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto**

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**Chapter 5 - Gathering**

New Years had come and gone with the usual fireworks, feasts, and presents. It was now time for the Uchiha clan gathering to begin. This year attendance was mandatory. Clan leader Fugaku Uchiha had put out word that all Uchiha clan members, no matter where they lived would be required to attend, with no exceptions granted. The clan ledger was used to track down members who did not live in Konoha and messengers were dispatched months ago to track them down. Only one person declined the invitation – a man who had moved to a small village in Northern Stone country – and he was now dead.

The gathering would be two weeks long. It was held yearly in an ancient fortress the clan members called the "Hideout". Not an especially imaginative name, but then its main purpose was military so it didn't need a real name. It was located to the North, halfway between Konoha and the Valley of the End. It would take two days to travel there by ox drawn cart (it would only take a Ninja three-quarters of a day to get there if he ran). Because of this the clan had been packing and transporting supplies like food and household items for almost two weeks now. There would be a lot of people to feed, and everyone would need bedding, soap, heating oil, and about fifty other things. There were supplies stored at the hideout already, but those were for emergencies, and since the gathering could not be classified as an emergency they would use fresh supplies.

Itachi was watching his mother carefully as she packed his things for the trip. He had wanted to do it himself, but she told him that since he had never been anywhere before he should watch her and maybe next year he could do it himself. She packed clothes, a bed roll, toothpaste, towels, books, toys, his shuriken and sword, and his ceremonial robes.

"When are we leaving today?" Itachi asked as he dragged his suitcase to the foyer.

"Ten-o-clock. We always leave at night. You'll be asleep by then, so when you wake up in the morning you will be in the ox cart." Mikoto smiled at Itachi. She was just as excited about going as he was. Well, maybe he was a little bit more excited. It was his first time attending a gathering. She had missed the last four gatherings because they were not mandatory and she didn't want to travel with a small child.

"Does Shisui get to travel in our cart?" Fugaku had already told Itachi that because Shisui was a member of the side-branch they would be separated at official events.

"He can, yes. You and he may play together, you just can't eat your meals together and when there are meetings he must sit with his parents in the back of the room and you must sit with your father and myself in the front of the room." She watched as Itachi slowly lowered his head to look at the floor. "Itachi, there is a reason it is this way. The main branch holds the clan together with leadership and has the ultimate responsibility for the fate of the members. The side branch provides the manpower to protect the clan. It has been the way of clans all over the world for hundreds of years because it works. You'll understand when you get older." He was still looking at the ground, and his hands were clenched tight. She kneeled down in front of him and took his hands in hers, unclenching his fists as she did so. "Be thankful you are an Uchiha and your father's heir. Your younger brother or sister will become a member of the side branch. You, however, are a prince among the Uchiha. Do not regret your station in life, and your clan will not regret having you as their leader. Other clans do not allow the branches to mix, but we do. That is why you and Shisui are allowed to play together. Does that make you feel better?" She wondered if he understood everything she was saying to him.

"No regrets." He answered her, then raised his head. "Those other clans are mean." He had a serious expression on his face.

"Does that mean you are glad you are an Uchiha?" Fugaku walked forward and gave his son a serious look. Itachi was startled at his sudden appearance, and bowed to him formally.

"Welcome home father." He bowed then looked up at his father. "I am glad I am an Uchiha. I will become a great ninja and lead the clan." Fugaku smiled and patted the boy on the head.

"Then all will be well, and you will be a good leader." He looked at Mikoto, "Is everything packed?"

"Yes it is. Toshiro was going to bring our ox-cart by at seven and load it for us, so we have a few hours left. Are you going to relax for a while before leaving?"

He sighed. "I guess not." Three village ninjas had just walked onto the porch.

"Fugaku Uchiha. The Fourth Hokage requests your presence in his office immediately." One of the ninja's said in a strong voice.

Fugaku gave his wife a smirk, then said in a low voice: "So it begins." He patted Itachi on the head again and turned around and walked out the front door and down to the sidewalk. He stopped and spoke without turning around "So are you coming or are you just going to stand there gawking and my pretty wife." He started walking again. The three ninjas ran to catch up to him.

"Why is father going to visit the Fourth Hokage?" Itachi asked.

Mikoto was smiling at what just happened, as well as her husband's compliment. "I don't know, but he'll probably tell us later. What do you say we do some chakra control exercises while we wait for him?"

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Fugaku walked straight in the Fourth's office without knocking.

"Yondaime." He greeted the Fourth by his title. "I am a busy man. Make it brief."

"Fugaku. I am not pleased with your decision to leave the village for two weeks. The majority of the civilian police force is made up of the Uchiha clan, and this places the village at a disadvantage during a time of war. The Third Hokage may have looked the other way, but now I am in charge. I ask that you reconsider your plans and leave a number of your clansmen behind, _including you_, to man your posts." The blond man stood up from his desk and walked to where Fugaku was standing, stopping three feet away from him. His blue eyes looked directly into Fugaku's red sharingan with no fear, haste, or hatred.

"As expected, you are a man that gets directly to the point. Very well then, so shall I." Fugaku was not a man to back down when challenged. "It is apparent that you are more concerned with having me out of your sight than you are with the lack of policemen manning the station. However, I have no intention of changing my plans. I will be leaving tonight. I am a civilian in this town."

"Yes you are a civilian. However, you are a civilian in a military town. That means you follow my orders. The police station exists as a civilian agency through a charter set forth by a previous Hokage. That charter exists at the whim of the Hokage, and I might remind you that my whims are based on the safety of Konoha. No other village operates a civilian police force, so if I were to annex it as a ninja agency the village would not suffer. As for you leaving my sight for two weeks." He moved closer so that the two men were only one foot from each other. "I know you are up to something. I will find out what it is and I will see to it that you are stopped. Do I make myself clear?" His voice was deadly serious and the look on his face would have sent even the most experienced jounin ninja cringing in fear. But not Fugaku. Fighting was what he lived for. He understood battle and challenges and blood and fear.

"I have no idea what you are talking about." He was beginning to enjoy their little "talk". Unfortunately he could not actually attack the Fourth, no matter how much he wanted to. That would have to wait. Instead he returned the Fourth's gaze.

"Do you deny that your clansmen, under your orders, entered the Forbidden Library and read several sealing scrolls?"

"I deny it." Fugaku answered simply.

"I thought you might. Very well then, go. But I will be continuing my investigation during your absence." The Fourth turned around and returned to his desk.

"Go ahead. I will warn you though, that entry into the Uchiha compound during our absence will be met with deadly force." Fugaku met the Fourth's eyes one last time, then he turned around and walked out of the office.

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Fugaku carried his sleeping son out of the house and placed him in the ox cart. It was ten feet long and four feet wide so it was a good size. Shisui was already inside asleep, and Kisa would be staying with them. Mikoto would be traveling in a wagon with Saiyu and Kagura. She was starting to have bouts of morning sickness and the two older women said they would stay with her. Fugaku would be sharing another ox-cart with several of the other men – where they would be taking turns sleeping and guarding the caravan. Konoha was still at war and while attacking a caravan of Uchiha clan members was not the brightest thing an enemy ninja could do, it wasn't inconceivable.

When all the ox-carts were outside of the village, Fugaku, Kentaro, and several other clan members came back into Konoha and positioned themselves on buildings and trees surrounding the Uchiha compound. A seal had been drawn in the center of the compound earlier. Fugaku looked around to verify that everyone was in place. He then raised his right hand and noted that everyone was looking at him, then dropped it quickly to his side. They all immediately formed a series of hand signs, then bit their thumbs to draw blood and quickly place their hands to the ground. The seal in the compound glowed red for a few seconds then started to grow. The men stood up and held their right hands directly in front of them until the seal touched them. They then lowered their wrists until their hands faced the ground. Holding their left hands perpendicular to their faces they concentrated on grounding the seal. The red seal turned into a red dome that was barely visible. The men then jumped down from their perches and walked back to the caravan. A person who crossed into the sealed compound would feel like they were being squeezed very tightly. If they didn't exit within one minute they would be killed. Signs were put up in about fifty places warning the other villagers to keep out.

In the background, Anbu were watching the Uchiha's every move. With them was the Fourth. The seal they had used on their compound came from his Forbidden Library. It was a direct slap in the face. He was livid. He had not been this mad in years. "Fugaku will pay for this." He said to no one in particular, then turned to the man at his side. "Deploy the Anbu assigned to follow them." He was surprised ninja had volunteered for the mission. After all, they would not be coming back alive.

"Yes sir." He raised his hand then pointed to the front gate, and several Anbu disappeared into the darkness.

Sitting on the statue of the First Hokage, a man dressed in black, with an orange and black mask laughed at the drama playing out in front of him. "Minato Namikaze. Your reign as Hokage will be the shortest in Konoha history."

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Itachi woke up the next morning after something fell on top of him.

"Sorry about that, Itachi." Shisui said as he re-adjusted himself. "I tried to crawl to the back of the wagon and fell over when we hit a bump."

"Oh." Itachi said groggily. He looked around. There was a canvas tarp wrapped around the top and sides of the cart. Shisui continued to crawl to the back of the cart and pushed the canvas flap to the side and tied it up. When he tied it, it pulled on the side flap and the eastern sky was revealed. It was still grey out, but the eastern sky was turning pink and blue. He sat down and leaned against the back of the cart, looking at the sunrise.

"If you're going to get up don't make too much noise, people in the other wagons are still asleep." Toshiro ducked his head in through the front flap from where he was sitting in the driver's seat to look at them, then disappeared behind the flap again. Kisa was still asleep. Itachi looked over at her, then closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

Red. Warmth. Itachi woke up, but didn't open his eyes. The sun was shining directly on him. He loved the red color he saw through his eyelids when he looked at the sun. He stayed like that for a while, concentrating on the color.

"Itachi, are you alright?" He heard a woman's voice and felt someone's hand on his forehead. Slowly he opened his eyes and saw that Kisa was looking at him with concern.

"Yeah." He answered.

"What were you doing?" She said in a low voice.

"I was looking at the sun."

"Why?"

"It is red and warm." He was being very matter-of-fact.

"Do you do it a lot?" She was stroking his hair.

"Yes. What's wrong?" He was a little curious why she was asking such strange questions.

"You dropped into a very deep meditative state. Your breathing became very shallow and you face was…" she didn't complete her sentence. The truth was, the first thought that went through her mind when she looked at him was that he was dead.

"Who taught you to meditate like that?" She said in what she hoped was a cheery voice. She didn't want to scare the boy.

"No one. I didn't know I was meditating. Like the monk at the temple, right?"

"Yes. Well, if you want breakfast you better get up." She smiled at him as he pushed the blankets back and sat up. "You can jump down to the ground while the wagon is moving and the food is couple wagons back. Do you need help getting down?"

"No! I want to try on my own." Kisa smiled as he crawled to the back of the wagon.

"You might want to put your shoes on first."

"Oh." He looked down at the rocky road. "Yeah. Where are they? Oh I see them."

Itachi and Shisui spent the rest of the day chasing each other around the wagons, playing with their action figures, and reading. Itachi visited his mother for a few minutes, but her morning sickness was worsened by a bout of motion sickness and she didn't feel very social.

That night they stopped for several hours to cook dinner and relax. Itachi sat with his father and they ate their dinner in silence while everyone around them talked and laughed. Itachi was hoping he would mention what happened at the Hokage's office, but Fugaku didn't seem ready to talk about it. For some reason Itachi felt he shouldn't ask.

Itachi felt a little lonely. His mother was sitting next to Kagura and was still ill. Kagura was trying to get her to eat some rice. Itachi looked at his father and noticed he was looking at Mikoto with a stern expression. Itachi had a flashback to his mother's breakdown when Obito had died. His father had been mad that she had displayed weakness. And here she was, showing weakness again. He started to tense up as his fathers chakra spiked, and he was suddenly very aware that he was only sitting one foot away from him. Too close.

Mikoto looked up and locked eyes with Fugaku, and Itachi saw it. The expression of fear on his mothers face. His grip tightened on his chopsticks and his hands started to shake a little. He noticed that there was no noise. Everyone was dead quiet. Very slowly, like a cornered animal, Itachi stood up then slowly and noiselessly moved away from his father. His hands were shaking even more as he felt someone take his bowl and chopsticks away from him and someone else pick him up. He was focusing solely on the dark chakra emanating from his father. He felt himself being put back down on the ground and realized it had been Shisui that had picked him up when he looked up into the boys face. They were standing behind one of the wagons.

Shisui put his finger to his lips "Shhhh." He was holding Itachi's hand in a very tight grip, and Itachi noticed that he was holding on just as tight, and he was still shaking. Itachi looked back at the group sitting in front of the fire. Kentaro caught his eye, and Itachi noticed that all of the Uchihas who were capable of sharingan had it turned on. Even his mother. Kentaro continued to look at Itachi instead of Fugaku and Itachi never wavered. It was like the elder wanted something, or was waiting for something. Suddenly Itachi broke his grip from Shisui and stepped away before the older boy could grab him.

"Father, I believe we should leave now. The sooner we get to the gathering, the sooner mother will feel better, and then you can tell us what happened with the Hokage." Itachi spoke in a strong clear voice, and he was no longer shaking. Fugaku turned around and looked at his son. The boy was no longer scared, in fact, there was no sign of emotion in his face at all. Father and son looked each other directly in the eye. Sharingan versus child. And the child won.

"We will leave within the hour." He back off on his chakra and everyone darted off in different direction to pack up the cooking gear and get the oxen hooked back up to the carts. Fugaku looked at his son again. Itachi was not moving and continued to look back at him. He wanted to say something to his son. He was very aware of Kentaro standing behind him and Shisui peeking out from behind a wagon. "Itachi." The boy blinked once to indicate he was listening. "If we were home, I would have…" He rubbed his forehead with his hand and closed his eyes.

"Father. Mother is ill. No one will fault her for it." He repeated the words that Madara had told him a couple months ago, changing them slightly.

"Itachi. You are such a perceptive child. You are the future of the clan. The genius of the Uchiha. Kentaro, tell the others I'm going to start surveillance from the front of the caravan." He walked away, down the road, then leapt into the trees.

Kentaro looked at Itachi and motioned for Shisui to come out of hiding. "Shisui, I want to thank you for getting Itachi out of the way." Shisui tried to respond but all that came out was a loud gulp, so he nodded his head instead. Toshiro walked up and put his hand on Shisui's shoulder. "The job of the side branch is to protect the main branch, but the job of friends is to protect each others well-being." He knew he was laying it on thick, but the boy was eating it up, looking up at him with big eyes. "And Itachi, facing your father like that shows true courage. Fugaku has a problem with his temper, that is very well known, but never spoken of out loud. If you are able to counteract his mood swings in the future the way you did tonight, then you truly are everything we hoped for." Itachi looked up at the elder, but no emotion showed on his face. He wasn't listening to the compliments; he didn't notice Shisui's nervousness. He was annoyed that he still didn't know what his father and Hokage had talked about.

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By the time they arrived at the hideout Mikoto had gone almost 24 hours without anything to drink or eat. She couldn't keep anything down. As soon as they arrived at the entrance Kagura jumped out of the wagon and ran full speed to where the medical supplies were while Kisa and Saiyu ran to the head family's quarters to set up her bed. Fugaku carried his wife into the building and carefully laid her down in her bed. Kagura ran in a couple minutes later with an IV drip solution and a holder. She expertly inserted the needle and started the drip.

"This should alleviate the dehydration. We'll let this do its work for a couple hours, then try to feed her again. This usually does the trick, though." Kagura was very professional in her explanation.

"As long as the room doesn't move, I'll be fine." Mikoto said weekly. Fugaku smirked.

"Well then, I'll go take the wheels off the building then. See you all later." He waved at the women as he left, noting their shocked expressions.

"Did…did Fugaku just make a joke?" Kisa said quietly.

"Maybe it was a genjutsu." Kagura said just a quietly.

"Could be…" Saiyu pinched herself "Nope. It was real."

"I think the building really does have wheels, it still feels like it's spinning." Mikoto answered in a small voice. The women laughed

"I'll stay with Mikoto, you go ahead and help people find their rooms." Kagura said to Kisa. Kisa and Toshiro had the job of playing hotel manager and assigning rooms.

"Yeah, I better go help Toshiro. Let me know if you need anything." She smiled at Mikoto and left.

"I'm going to grab the boys and volunteer them for kitchen duty." Saiyu laughed as she left the room.

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Kitchen duty involved opening boxes and stacking cans in cupboards. Not exactly the most exciting of activities, and certainly not how the two boys imagined spending their afternoon. Sulking slightly, they worked slowly. Shisui had slit open several boxes and Itachi had insisted on sorting the types of food on the shelves. They sped up an hour later when Saiyu told them that the faster they finished, the sooner they would be set free.

When they finally finished they walked out of the pantry and into the big kitchen. It was the size of Shisui's house. There were several large ovens and lots of stainless steel tables and all sorts of cooking utensils hung from overhead racks. There were several clan members working – men and women. The boys recognized several people. The older couple who ran the Uchiha bakery were rolling out dough, the grocer and his wife were cutting up vegetables, the four people who worked in the Uchiha restaurant were hovering over two of the ovens and one was stirring a huge pot. There were other people still unpacking dishes and glasses, and they noticed a large room opposite where they were standing that had cold steam blowing out of it. A man in a long white apron walked out pushing a cart of meat and the large stainless steel door made a "wooshing" sound as he closed it behind him. There were other miscellaneous people doing other tasks as well. One of them, a girl the boys had never seen before came up to them and gave them each a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

"You must be hungry – standing here drooling at the food." She smiled at them as they gratefully accepted the sandwiches. "My name is Rumiko. My family lives in the Fire Country capital city. What are your names?"

"I'm Shisui." He said, concentrating on eating. He hadn't realized how hungry he was.

"My name is Itachi. I am pleased to meet you." He bowed politely. Shisui saw Itachi and quickly bowed too, slightly embarrassed at not greeting her properly.

"How old are you?" Shisui asked. She didn't look too much older than Obito.

"I'm fifteen. My father was assigned by Fugaku to serve the Daimyo, so I act as a ninja in the Daimyo's service as well. I've lived there since I was seven. We don't get to visit Konoha very often, so I've never seen you two before."

"Are the boys done unpacking the cans?" Saiyu's voice sounded from across the room. Rumiko turned around and winked at Saiyu who smiled back at her.

"Quick! Make a run for it or she'll make you polish the chopsticks!" She pushed them toward the exit and the boys took the hint and took off running down the hall.

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Dinner that night, and every subsequent night was exactly the same. Itachi sat with his father and mother at a table that was situated on a podium so they could look over the other clan members. Directly in front of them sat the rest of the main branch families, and behind them were the side branch families. Each night a different group of people from the side branch acted as waiters, bringing out food, filling drinks, and running errands. Rumiko volunteered to work every night. Mikoto told her she didn't have to and could trade off with someone else.

"It's okay," she answered light-heartedly, "I work part-time at a restaurant in the capital when I'm not out on missions. I love it. When I retire from being a ninja I'm going to have my own restaurant. I meet all kinds of people, and get to talk to them about all sorts of subjects. Also, since I don't live in Konoha this is a great opportunity to meet everyone. We haven't been to a gathering since I was eight so I don't remember most of the people I knew back then. Since I'm legal age now, I can come without my parents, so I'll be here every year from now on." She was excited about her new found freedom and Mikoto couldn't help but laugh at her exuberance.

"Wow." Itachi said as Rumiko walked off to another table. "She reminds me of Rin."

"Yes she does." Mikoto laughed again. "I understand she is very good at getting information out of people in the restaurant."

"They don't even know what they are telling her. She is very talented." Fugaku smiled. "I'm going to keep her in the capital for a while because of that. Plus the Daimyo is impressed with her skill on missions and would like to keep her on as well."

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By the second day Mikoto was feeling normal again and was standing in their quarters waiting for the clock to tell them it was time to leave for the ceremony. All three were in their ceremonial clothes. Fugaku and Itachi were dressed alike in black robes with the Uchiha symbol on the back. Mikoto wore a black Kimono with the same symbol on her back as well. By tradition, the ceremonial hall was filled in a certain order. The side branch would walk in and take their place on pre-placed mats in the back of the hall. Then the main branch families would take their place on mats in the front of the hall and finally the head man's family would walk in and stand in front of them. It was all timed out so that each branch knew what time to enter the chamber.

It was finally time to leave. Fugaku walked out of their quarters, Itachi followed him and Mikoto walked behind Itachi closing the door behind her. They walked slowly, so it took fifteen minutes to get to the room. When they reached the double doors Fugaku paused.

"You two remember what you are supposed to do?" He asked softly without looking back. Neither Itachi nor Mikoto had been part of the ceremony before. Itachi was too young, and Mikoto had not attended a gathering since she married Fugaku.

"Yes." They both responded. Fugaku would not be too accepting any mistakes at this point, and, well, they wouldn't be too happy with themselves either if they messed up.

Fugaku opened the double doors and walked into the room. The room was huge. It was larger than anything in Konoha. At the far end the clan was seated in front of a staircase that lead to a dais with a large chair placed in the middle. The three walked slowly down the aisle that cut down the middle of the clansmen then ascended the stairs. There were five steps and Fugaku stopped on the fourth step, with Itachi one step below him, to the right and Mikoto one step below Itachi. They bowed to the empty chair, and everyone else in the hall bowed as well. The three then turned and faced the clan.

Fugaku look over the people assembled, then spoke in a loud, clear voice that echoed in the chamber. "We are assembled here to pay homage to Madara Uchiha, the founder of the Uchiha clan and to discuss clan-related events."

Both boys gasped and the same thought passed through their minds simultaneously: 'Madara Uchiha is the founder of the clan?' They had never heard this before. The man was never named. He was always referred to as "the Founder". They both wanted to look around the room and see what everyone else thought, but they had been instructed to look straight ahead and not make eye contact. It was easier for Shisui, as he was sitting in the back, but Itachi was standing in front of everyone and had to use every bit of self control his four-year-old body could muster.

Fugaku had sensed Itachi's shock. He found it curious that the name would surprise him, but he was proud of the boys' composure. He had reacted, but kept himself under control. He continued with his speech "The throne is kept empty for the day when the Founder returns to reclaim his position."

'Returns?' Again, the two boys thought the same thing at the same time. Shisui's heart was pounding. Itachi kept staring ahead, hoping that the ceremony would be over soon. Both wanted desperately to talk to Madara.

'Would he show up here? I thought he said he couldn't show his face in Konoha, that the clan would be unhappy if they saw him.' Itachi was very confused.

In the first row Kentaro glanced at Itachi out of the corner of his eye. Fugaku had never said Madara's name in the ceremony before. He, and others, always called him "the Founder". At least Itachi hadn't lost his composure. He sensed a momentary shock from the boy, but he had immediately brought himself back under control. Was Fugaku playing games with them, or did he choose to use the name on his own? He knew he had been called into the Hokage's office the night they left, and that he had ordered the use of one of the Forbidden scrolls to seal the Uchiha compound. Did he know something? Did the Hokage tell him something? Fugaku had not mentioned what had happened in the meeting.

"Until he reclaims his throne, none may sit upon it. Until he returns and names his heir, none may approach it. We give our undying gratitude and swear ultimate fealty to Madara Uchiha." The three turned around again and this time they kneeled down on the stairs and bowed their heads to the throne in supplication. The rest of the clansmen kowtowed. When everyone sat up straight again Fugaku, Mikoto and Itachi turned around and faced them.

"On to clan affairs." Now that the niceties were over, Fugaku changed the subject. "First, I would like to introduce my heir, Itachi Uchiha." Everyone kowtowed to him and Itachi remained motionless, as he had been instructed. "Second, I would like relate to you all what went on when I met with the Hokage a few days ago." He paused. The elders would not like the fact that he was discussing this with the whole clan present instead of them first. But he had his reasons. "He is suspicious, but he has no clear facts. He is currently gathering as much information as he can on our clan. He will be unable to enter the Konoha Uchiha compound, but no doubt he has sent Anbu here. They may even be listening in on us now. Sending Anbu after us is a suicide mission. These ninja are not expecting to survive, which makes them extremely dangerous. Any Anbu found are to be killed on sight. Due to the suicidal nature of the mission they would be unreliable information sources and are not worth the trouble of interrogating." He paused.

Itachi was listening very closely. Finally he was learning what his father and the Hokage had discussed. But he was a little surprised that the Hokage would do something like that. He seemed so nice when he met him at Obito's funeral.

"Any conversation with the Hokage shall be written down in a report and submitted directly to me, your clan leader Fugaku Uchiha. No one else. If anyone tells you to give the report to another person, refuse. I will not be lenient to those who disobey me. I am at the police station everyday and you can bring them to me there. If you are unable to deliver it when I am at work, bring it by my house – even if it is 3am I will take the time to read it. If I am not available at all you will hold onto the report until I am. Also, if the Hokage or any of his representatives, Anbu, or other ninja's ask you clan related business politely decline to answer and refer them to me. In other words, I am now the only person in the clan with authority to discuss clan business with the Hokage." His voice was loud and very stern. The elders were shocked. He had just told the clan to bypass them. Usually, the clan passed on their concerns to the elder council, then the elders sifted through them and passed on only those issues of the most importance, thus handling everything else themselves.

'Perhaps Fugaku is suspicious of us.' Kentaro thought to himself. 'I will have to discuss this with Madara later.'

Fugaku had paused to wait a couple minutes for what he said to sink in. "The purpose of requiring everyone to come to this meeting was so we could re-acquaint ourselves with the other members of the clan. We are spread over the five great shinobi nations. Over the last 24 hours I have re-assigned all Uchiha's living in foreign nations back to Fire Country. Some will live in the capital, the rest will move to Konoha. The people in this hall constitute the only members of the clan. Anyone not in this hall shall not be considered an Uchiha. Anyone who did not attend this gathering is now dead." There was a sudden spike in chakra at that. The Uchiha were usually a very laid back clan, as far as clans went. They had heard that one person was killed for not attending, but having it thrown in their face like this was very final. Fugaku was serious. "If you meet someone who claims to be an Uchiha and you did not see them here, report them immediately.

"Ever since the Fourth came to power he has been stepping on our heels, trying to get at our secrets. He believes we are up to something. He perhaps has even heard of the ultimate destiny of the Uchiha clan and sees that as a threat. The man has become a threat to our continued existence. Because of that, for the last year we have been working on a way to assassinate him. Our plans are finally coming together, but we have more information to gather, as well as training to conduct in the use of the techniques we have been acquiring from the Forbidden library. During our time here in the next few days many of you will be organized into groups relating to various forbidden techniques to practice. Because of the nature of the techniques you will only be able to practice here. Your teams will arrange for future practice session in the hideout until you are experts in your assigned techniques. Over the next few days I will meet with each of the teams for discussions in case there are problems or questions. Your part in the final plan will be revealed to you right before we attack."

The last part of the meeting was a memorial to the Uchiha's who had died over the past year. Fugaku even included the one they had to kill for refusing to attend the meeting. When it was over, the head family walked down the stairs, Fugaku first, then Itachi and Mikoto and exited through the double-doors, retracing their steps back to their quarters. When they entered Itachi stopped walking and stood in the middle of the room, staring straight ahead at nothing.

"So. This is what it is like to be head of a clan." He said to no on in particular. Fugaku was in the process of walking into the master bedroom when he heard his son. He stopped. His back was to his son, and his face saddened.

"Do you regret it?" Fugaku continued the conversation they had in the foyer of their house right before he had been summoned by the Hokage.

"Does the Hokage really want to get rid of us? Will he kill us?" Itachi spoke in a small voice.

"Truthfully, I don't know what he plans. But his nosing around is causing us problems. Also, he is not butting into the affairs of the Hyuuga's or the other clans, so that is what tipped us off that we are being singled out. Madara and the First were great friends who had a falling out and fought at the Valley of the End. After that the Uchiha clan has never regained its good graces with the citizens of Konoha." He was choosing his words so he wouldn't scare his son. It was a fear in the back of his mind, that execution was the ultimate goal of the Fourth. In the Village Hidden in the Mist, clans with Kekkei Genkai were being exterminated at an alarming rate. Thousands of people had already been killed. He found it hard to believe that Konoha would go that far, but the Fourth's activities since he took office could not be taken lightly. He sighed and lowered his head. "I must protect my clan. I must protect my family. Without them, we are nothing. I am nothing." He spoke in a sad voice.

"Then… no regrets father." Itachi bowed to his parents and went to his bedroom.

Fugaku straightened up, shocked at the words of a four-year-old boy. Can he really understand everything that is going on?

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Itachi couldn't sleep. He kept thinking about the words of his father. The Hokage was a threat, and Madara was their true leader. He wished his room had a window. Finally he got up, put on his kitty slippers and walked back into the common area, and out the front door into the hallway. There was a window in the hallway and he stood in front of it for a while looking at the moon. He tried to concentrate on it, but his mind wouldn't focus.

"Itachi! Follow me!" Madara's stern voice startled Itachi as the man suddenly walked past him, as if in a hurry. He hadn't heard him or sensed any chakra until he heard his voice. Itachi quickly ran after him. He had to jog in order to keep up with the man. They soon reached the double-doors of the ceremonial chamber. Madara opened them and walked through. Itachi followed him and the door closed behind him. He noticed that one of the elders was locking them.

They approached the dais at the other end of the room. There were a few people standing at the bottom of the stairs. When they saw Madara approaching they arranged themselves on the mats and sat down. The man walked past them, and up the stairs, motioning Itachi to follow him. When he reached the top he sat down on the throne and positioned Itachi to stand to his right. All those assembled kowtowed and then looked back up at them. Itachi was a little out of it. He was still sleepy, he had just jogged through the hideout, and now he was standing next to Madara looking down at about twenty people. Those sitting below the dais were just as confused. Madara had called them for an unplanned meeting thirty minutes earlier. They had to make their excuses and rushed to the chamber, and when Madara appeared he had the young clan heir with him. Complete in pastel yellow pajamas with a black and white soccer ball pattern and kitty slippers.

"Itachi." The man's voice was sterner than usual. "The people you see in front of you are my council. Also known as the inner council. You know most of them, I suspect. If you need to get a hold of me, contact one of them and they will take care of it. Do you know what the word 'discreet' means?"

"To do something without people finding out?" Itachi answered, unsure of what was going on.

"Close enough. Any conversation with these people that concerns me must be discreet. Do not let your parents or Shisui know about my council." Itachi looked over the people gathered below him and singled out Kentaro and Kagura.

'Good, they are friends of mine.' He thought, relieved. But Kagura was not happy to see the boy there. In fact, it scared her. Fugaku would consider the members of Madara's council to be traitors. What would he do if he found out Itachi was now connected to them? Also, if she wasn't mistaken, it looked like Itachi and Madara already knew each other.

"I have been training Itachi and Shisui in secret for two months now. However, for the time being, only Itachi will be aware of the council's existence. After Fugaku's speech this evening it became apparent to me that Itachi could be placed in a bad situation if Fugaku learns too much about our plans. Therefore, I brought him here so he would know of our existence and be able to act accordingly should any unfortunate circumstances occur. The danger to Shisui pales drastically by comparison so he is still safe if he is kept in the dark." Madara shifted in his seat so that he was looking at the small boy. He noticed that Itachi was shivering slightly and stood up to remove his cloak. He wrapped it around the boy and Itachi clutched it so he could hold it around him. It was very warm and he smiled. Madara sat down and faced Itachi as he spoke to him in a voice that still carried to the people seated below.

"Itachi, if you hear that Fugaku is being questioned about my existence or my council you are to contact one of us at once. Then we can step in and protect him. He is a smart man and can protect himself in most cases, but in this case, ignorance could harm him. Unfortunately, full disclosure could harm him even more so we are going to use you to help us protect him. Do you understand?"

"I understand." Itachi looked directly at Madara as he spoke.

"Kentaro, would you return Itachi to his quarters?"

"Yes Madara. Come along Itachi, time for bed." Itachi removed the cloak and bowed to Madara one last time before walking down the stairs.

When Kentaro and Itachi arrived at his quarters Kentaro put his hand on Itachi's head and guided him to the window and started to talk about the stars. Itachi heard the door open and his mothers voice was saying "I bet he's out here looking out the window since his room doesn't have one…Oh! Fugaku I found him." Mikoto smiled at Itachi and Kentaro.

"Kentaro, it's good to see you." Fugaku said.

"Well, I couldn't very well let Itachi look at the stars by himself, now could I?"

"Itachi," Fugaku looked down at his son "I should have mentioned it earlier, but I don't want you to be alone while we are here. There is too much of a risk with the Anbu hanging about. If something happened it could be hours before we found you. This fortress is gigantic." Itachi was looking sullenly at the ground. "You aren't in trouble, Itachi. Like I said, I should have told you earlier. Now go to bed and try to get some sleep." Itachi walked into their small apartment and Mikoto followed, closing the door.

"I won't ask why you were out so late, wandering around. But I will say, that if anything happens to Itachi…"

"I had better not be alive when you find me. I assure you, Fugaku, that if anything does happen to Itachi there will be no point in looking for my body, as I will already be dead." Kentaro's voice was deadly serious, as was Fugaku's.

"Then I will say one thing more. Anyone…Anyone _at all_ who stands between me and my son will be killed. Make sure that does not happen." His sharingan was activated and he looked the elder in the eye. "As long as the Fourth ends up dead, there are a lot of other things I am capable of overlooking. And Itachi is the one who will lead this clan. Not me, _not anyone else_. _Do I make myself clear_?" There was a lot of venom in Fugaku's voice. Again, Kentaro wondered what Fugaku knew. However, there was a strong hint in his words that suggested that Madara was being given free reign as long as the Fourth ended up dead.

"We are playing an extremely dangerous game, Fugaku. It is obvious you understand the rules, but are just as willing to change them. Itachi is just as much a pawn in this game and you or I. Perhaps even more so given what your plans are for him. Your speech this evening was a calculated risk. When we return to Konoha things will not be pleasant. But remember this, no matter what happens. I have your back. I have Mikoto's back, and I have Itachi's back. None of you will fall. Good night, Fugaku." Kentaro bowed to him and walked slowly down the hall.

It was fifteen minutes later, when Fugaku was back in his quarters and sitting on the couch that he realized that Kentaro's offer of protection had not been extended to his unborn child. 'He probably forgot…' he tried to tell himself that, but the way the elder had made a point of naming them made him think that perhaps the baby would be in danger after he or she was born. Perhaps it was a warning? "Whether it is or not, I will take it as such. After the baby is born I will do what I can to ensure his or her security." Fugaku was awake for the rest of the night. And in the small bedroom next to the living room, Itachi also lay in his bed, wide-awake.

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The next morning Rumiko rolled a cart of food into their quarters. Mikoto's morning sickness made it difficult for her to go to the dining room for breakfast (the overpowering smell of food made her ill), so she had arranged for her family to eat in their quarters. Rumiko greeted them cheerfully, then told Mikoto to leave the cart in the hall when they were done and she would pick it up later.

Fugaku had already left before dawn to search for the Anbu, so Mikoto and Itachi ate together. Itachi was a little listless and his eyes had dark circles under them. Mikoto guessed that the speech given during the ceremony had him worried. 'If he were a normal child he would have complained, and I could have used a sleep jutsu to put him to sleep.' She said to herself. But Itachi rarely complained.

An hour later Kentaro showed up to collect Itachi. The boy had been sitting at the table coloring with his crayons. An activity he rarely ever did. He wasn't really into art projects, and preferred more active activities, but this morning he had asked for his crayons and a coloring book. It was a mindless activity meant to pass the time.

"I thought Itachi and Shisui would like to come with me and do a bit of exploring. This place can be very fascinating." Kentaro said with a big smile.

"Oh, I don't know." She spoke in a very low voice. "Itachi didn't get a wink of sleep last night."

"Hmmm. Neither did Shisui." She looked into the hallway and saw a very sleepy boy leaning against the wall.

"I want to go, mother." Itachi said as he moved to the doorway.

"Okay, but I want you back here later for a nap. Maybe going for a walk will help you unwind some." She smiled at Itachi and waved to them as they disappeared down the hall. 'I hope it works. Maybe if they talk over their fears with each other the boys will feel better.'

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"Itachi, Shisui, you look like you haven't slept in a week." Madara looked down at the boys. Itachi looked up at him, but Shisui kept his eyes on the floor. Kentaro had moved to a chair in the back of the room and opened a book as soon as they had entered. Madara knelt down to the boys' level and put a hand on each of their shoulders. He stayed like that for a couple minutes waiting for one of them to say something.

"Are you really the Madara who fought the First?" Shisui finally said in a small voice. "Are you really the Founder?"

"Yes. I am Madara Uchiha."

"But, the fight with First happened almost eighty years ago. My dad told me all about it after the meeting." Shisui sounded dejected. "Madara disappeared after that. He should be dead by now. There is no way you could be him."

"I assure you, Shisui, there is a way, and I am him. You have nothing to worry about. I did not lie to you, you are not breaking any of Fugaku's rules by being here with me, and I will protect you if anything does happen." Madara lifted Shisui's chin as he spoke so that he could look him in the eye.

"For real?" Shisui said hopefully.

"Yes, for real." Madara gave a big smile, even though it couldn't be seen through the mask. Then Itachi erased that smile with a statement that sent a huge shock wave through the man.

"Did you use Obito's body to come back?" The only thing that Madara could think of now was just how much he had underestimated the genius locked up in the mind of the four-year-old boy standing in front of him. Kentaro had dropped his book on the floor and stood up when he heard Itachi's question. Madara saw the elder looking at him for instructions. He nodded his head and Kentaro sat back down. He ran his had through the boy's hair once then put his hand back on his shoulder.

"Itachi. Obito was very precious to you. You were also very precious to him. He loved his clan very much, and gave his life defending his comrades. As far as deaths go, that was a very noble act. A lot of shinobi hope they will die like that, but most end up alone, dying slowly on a battlefield. Shinobi are just tools. Tools of their clans, tools of their villages, tools of the daimyo. A tool of the highest bidder. You receive your orders, you carry them out, you don't think whether it was right, or wrong, or moral. Obito was the same way. He was a Chuunin. That is a higher rank among shinobi. He got that rank by being a tool. Following orders, killing when told to, and eventually being killed to fulfill his mission. Do you understand? I mean, really understand what I am saying?" Madara was trying not to underestimate the boy again.

"Yes. Obito would never tell us everything that happened on his missions. He said we were too young."

"What about you Shisui?" Madara looked at the older boy, who was now looking straight at him.

"Yes. I understand. We were taught that in the academy, but I think your way of saying it is better."

"I don't want to make you mad, but I am not going to answer your question, Itachi, the question, whether 'yes' or 'no' is not important right now. Also, Kagura is a good friend to both of you and you wouldn't want to upset her." Madara stood up.

"You're right." Itachi sighed. He still remembered thinking it was Obito he saw instead of Madara many months earlier by the lake.

"I don't think we will do any training today, you are both over-tired and very worried." He paused and looked down at them. "Boys, I do have something else to show you today, however. If you would move to the wall, next to Kentaro, I will show you how a Shinobi deals with an ANBU spy." The boys ran as fast as they could to Kentaro as Madara quickly turned around and did a body-flicker move to the other side of the large training room. He used his fist to punch a hole in the cement wall. He then reached in and pulled out a man dressed all in black, then threw him to the middle of the room.

"Ah! How nice of you to join us, but I believe we are at a disadvantage. You heard my name, but I have yet to hear yours. Please share it with us." Madara's deep voice echoed in the large room.

"None of your business." The man spat at him.

"Hmm. What a funny name. Well Mr. Business let's put on a good show for the children. They've never seen anyone die before and I think you will do nicely as their first." Madara advanced across the room until he stood a few feet away from the Anbu, who was now crouching on the ground, ready to strike. He looked over at the boys and saw them standing on either side of Kentaro, who had moved them next to the door – conceivably so they could make a safe get-away if something went wrong.

"Children, what crime shall we charge this man with?"

"Spying!" They both answered simultaneously.

"What kind of a man are you! Are you really going to kill me in front of two young children! One of them is still a toddler!" The Anbu was shocked at the heartlessness of the man in front of him. He had been warned about the ruthlessness of the Uchiha when he had accepted his mission, but this was beyond what he had expected.

"And what are you planning to do to them instead? Should I spare your life so they don't see you killed? Then turn my back while you kill their parents in front of them instead? The children of the Uchiha are taught to defend their clan because no one else will." Madara had his hand in a fist and was pointing it at the ANBU as he talked. The boys were watching everything very closely. Kentaro was smiling.

"I'm not planning on killing anyone here. I was just sent to collect information."

"And what do you think that information was going to be used for?"

"How should I know? I'm ANBU. The Hokage decides stuff on his own. I was just…" he paused, then stood up. "I am not going to argue with you. Either fight me or let me go."

"Die." Madara said and charged at the Anbu.

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**Next chapter will have Madara fighting the ANBU, a moment alone with Kagura and Madara, and a surprise awaits the clan when they return to the village. Lots of action and fighting. **


	6. Chapter 6 Life and Death

**In the previous chapter the Uchiha clan arrived at the Hideout for their annual gathering. Before he leaves, Fugaku has a meeting with the Fourth who requests he not leave the village, then accuses him of "being up to something". When Fugaku addresses the clan at the gathering opening ceremony he uses the name "Madara Uchiha" instead of "The Founder", then he confronts Kentaro later in the hallway and tells him that as long as the Fourth ends up dead, he will overlook certain actions. He then tells Kentaro that he will kill anyone who gets between him and his son. Kentaro takes this as a sign that Fugaku knows something about what Madara is up to. Kentaro then says he has Fugaku, Mikoto and Itachi's back, but fails to mention the unborn child – leading Fugaku to believe that the baby may be in danger after he or she is born. The next day Itachi and Shisui get to talk to Madara and Itachi accuses Madara of using Obito's body to survive. Madara refuses to answer Itachi's accusation, saying the question is irrelevant. Madara then detects an Anbu and decides to use him as the children's first experience with death.**

**Thank-you for the reviews! I didn't get 3 new ones, but who cares. This is such a great chapter I'm going to post it anyway xD**

**Reviewers - thanks for compliments!:**

**Blaise91 – I actually have an outline of the whole story, and I write an outline for each chapter. I even follow it somewhat…**

**Razzberyfigs – Yeah – you're right, I already figured an Itachi wouldn't get too much attention. But that's okay, I'm not giving up xD**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto**

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**Chapter 6 – Life and Death**

Madara lunged at the ANBU, his right arm in front of him ready to strike. The ANBU jumped up and kicked at Madara, but he passed completely through him and in his surprise landed on his back. Recovering quickly he jumped up into a crouch and pulled a sword out of the holder on his back.

"He must have moved faster than I thought and I missed him." The man said quietly.

Madara came up behind him and the ANBU twisted around and sliced through him. Madara's torso separated from his legs and collapsed to the ground. There was a gasp from the boys standing by the door. Kentaro's grin widened and he put his hands on the boy's shoulders to keep them from moving.

"That was easy. So he was all bark and no bite." The ANBU looked at the man who was lying on the ground, split in two. But, there was something wrong. There was no blood! Not a single red drop anywhere. "A substitution jutsu? Or genjutsu?" He looked around to see if his opponent was somewhere else in the room. The room was not well lit. The only direct light was at the entrance and the rest of the room was half as bright and had a lot of shadows. The high ceiling contained no overhangs so he probably wasn't hiding up there. The corners were black. That would be a good place to hide. But there was no chakra signature, anywhere. It was like the man simply ceased to exist.

"Ha ha ha ha ha!" He heard the laugh as a kunai sliced into his back, severing his spinal column. "Missed me!" Madara stood over the man as he collapsed onto the floor. He was in one piece again.

"How? How did you do that?" He asked as his limbs tingled then went numb.

"Tell me Mr. Business. How does it feel to die, knowing that your usefulness as a tool was for naught? That you failed to protect your Kage? Alone, in a strange place, away from your family? It hurts, doesn't it? With your spine severed, you feel nothing. But for some reason, your heart still pains you. The feelings in your heart cannot be severed."

"Damn you!" The man sputtered.

"I am not the one you should be cursing. It is the world that deserves to be cursed. I'm sorry, I phrased that wrong. The world is already cursed." Madara pulled out a sword from beneath his cloak and pointed it at the man's neck. He then whispered words that rebounded in the room louder than his booming voice did a minute earlier "I will now give you a death faster than my own. Not because you deserve it, but to remove you from this cursed world." He plunged the sword into the man's heart and with a shudder the ANBU's eyes fluttered into the back of his head and he died. He pulled the sword out, wiped it off on the man's shirt and re-sheathed it.

Madara stood staring at the dead body. He was waiting for a reaction from the boys. Specifically Itachi. The reactions came a minute later. Shisui was throwing up and Itachi was now standing beside Madara looking at the body. He bent down and removed the mask, it was a "rat" face. Itachi reached over and touched the man's face.

"Can I keep the mask?" Itachi asked as he looked at it.

"I'm sorry Itachi, but you can only posses an Anbu mask if you earn it. This man earned one and therefore he deserves the respect of being buried with it." Madara's voice was a little lighter than usual.

"Okay." He put the mask on the man's chest, then slid it over his heart. "Then one day I will be an Anbu and I can have a mask."

"That is the idea, Itachi. ANBU only accepts top notch shinobi into their ranks. If you attain that rank, you will truly be powerful." He turned around and addressed Kentaro, who had his arm around Shisui's shoulders. "Is the boy alright?" He noticed that Shisui had tears in his eyes.

"Yes. He is embarrassed about his reaction." Shisui was looking at the floor and flushed bright red. Madara smiled, then put his hand on Itachi's back and guided him back to the door where Kentaro and Shisui were standing. Kneeling down to Shisui's level, Madara reached over and held the boy's chin up.

"Shisui, it's nothing to be embarrassed about. In fact, most genin have nightmares until they've seen several kills. After a while, they get used to it.

"But Itachi didn't throw up." Shisui was feeling very bad. He always thought he was the "big brother" who looked after the small boy, but this time the tables were turned and he was having trouble adjusting.

Madara glanced at Itachi, who didn't appear to be paying attention. He was staring intently at the mask. This was going to be hard to explain. He didn't want anything to come between the boys, but he knew that the normal course of events between two children raised almost like siblings would result in occasional discontent. The truth might be met with jealousy. Yet Itachi's reaction was almost completely devoid of emotion, and he was fixated on a personal object once treasured by the deceased.

'Killing this man was a mistake.' Madara decided. 'Shisui's nightmares are going to be difficult to explain away, and Itachi is acting like a junior psychopath.' He continued to look at Shisui's face. He considered wiping the memory from the boy, but decided that it was better in the long run if he kept it. Perhaps it would work itself out on its own. He stood up and looked at Kentaro.

"Please take the boys to their quarters. They need to sleep. I will move the body someplace where the others can find it." Kentaro was still smiling. No, it was a smirk.

"Will you be available in an hour to talk, Madara?" Kentaro asked.

"Yes, come back here when you are done."

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An hour later Kentaro was standing in front of Madara in the training room.

"I realize you probably regret killing that man in front of the children." Kentaro spoke firmly "But it was the right thing to do. I can deal with whatever happens in their personal lives because of it."

"Can you deal with Itachi?" Madara looked straight into Kentaro's eyes with his sharingan. "His reaction was no where near normal. He is perfect for my plans, but as he grows and becomes more powerful he could become harder and harder to control. Ultimately, I may even have trouble controlling him."

"We will deal with that if and when it happens. Our goal is survival. The clan is slowly dying, stagnating. Our women have trouble giving birth, and our gene pool is dwindling. Only about a third of the clan is capable of awakening the sharingan. If…when your plan comes to fruition those odds will increase drastically. The clan will be renewed and our survival in this world is guaranteed. We need Itachi for that. You saw Shisui's reaction. He would never be able to accomplish the task you have set aside for Itachi."

"Huh. Yes. Itachi is perfect. But we must not leave him alone to his own devices for very long. We must be perfectly in control of what he thinks and what he does. At the same time, Itachi and Shisui must maintain their friendship. As Itachi surpasses Shisui it will cause friction. We saw the beginnings of that today."

"Yes. That shouldn't be too hard. Their parents are good friends so they cannot avoid each other."

"Well, I'm going to head back to Konoha for a couple days to see what is going on back there. I'll see you and the inner council when I return." Madara used a jutsu to disappear, leaving Kentaro alone in the training room.

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_Itachi walked down the main road of the Uchiha compound. For some reason there was blood on his sword. Everything around him was dark. He was all alone. "Why are there no ghosts?" he heard himself say._

Itachi jerked awake and sat up. It was a dream. He looked around his small bedroom and saw nothing, except a thin ribbon of light shining under the door. He could hear his mother and father talking in the other room. His mother laughed at something. "I'm not alone." He reassured himself, then laid down and went back to sleep.

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The next day Itachi and Shisui kept themselves busy playing soccer, practicing Taijutsu and throwing kunai. The sun was bright and the sky didn't have a single cloud. It was cold out, since it was still January, but they were so busy they didn't notice. When mid-afternoon came they were ready for a snack and decided to visit Rumiko. They had both grown pretty close to her, she was always good for sneaking an extra snack.

Making their way back into the fortress through a side entrance they jogged down the hall to the kitchen. Just as they reached the double doors they heard a loud metallic crash. Thinking that one of the workers dropped something accidentally they walked into the kitchen without a second thought and stopped in shock. Ten feet in front of them the grocer and his wife lay on the floor - decapitated. Shisui grabbed Itachi's hand and started to pull him back through the door when both boys were suddenly knocked across the room. They landed with their backs up against a cabinet. Out of breath, they looked up they saw an ANBU advancing on them. He was dressed all in black and had a "cow" face mask. There were dark streaks on his pants and shirt – probably blood. He pulled out a bloody sword and held it horizontal in from of his face.

"You're next little boys." The ANBU's voice was full of venom. "Your clan killed all eleven of my teammates, and I am going to kill you to pay them back. It'll be even then."

Itachi and Shisui stood up quickly and ran behind the cabinet and under a table. Itachi started throwing anything he could grab at the man. "Throw stuff at him Shisui! Make lots of noise! Father will hear us!" Itachi yelled as he brushed his arm across the top of a table as they ran by it. The man was having trouble chasing the children through the maze of tables. The boys shoved flour and sugar on to the floor and the man slipped. He was so mad that he was unable to think clearly, and his chakra control was worsening. He stood up again and quickly located the boys and took off after them again.

'Why does this kitchen have so many tables!' he said to himself. The boys could run under them without slowing down, and they were throwing stuff at him. He decided to try jumping on the tables to head them off, but the children backtracked and tried to make a run for the door. He jumped across the room and blocked the door. The children ran back to the tables, kicking pots and copper bowls to keep the noise level up. The ANBU picked up a small pot and threw it between two tables. It hit the older boy in the forehead and he collapsed on the floor, unconscious. The smaller boy grabbed him and pulled him under a table. The ANBU advanced on them, under the mask his face was contorted in mindless anger.

"It's time to stop running little boys. I'm going to kill you now." He was two tables away. Itachi was unsure what to do. He couldn't leave his best friend, but this man was going to kill him. He started throwing everything he could reach at the man. Some of the objects hit their mark. Shisui started to come to.

"Shisui, we have to run!" Itachi grabbed the boys hand and pulled him up. They ran under another table and Shisui noticed a small chopping block next to the table. He was seeing two of everything and his first attempt to grab the block failed. He shook his head and blinked a few times and things returned to normal. He grabbed a knife and handed it to Itachi, then he grabbed one for himself. The next moment was very confusing. Without even discussing a plan two small boys, four and seven-years-old suddenly ran straight at an adult ANBU, stabbing him in the chest, at the same time a sword was inserted in the mans back slicing all the way through his heart before sticking out of his chest. The ANBU collapsed on the floor. His mask fell off and the boys could see his eyes widening in shock. He died believing that he had been killed by two children. Shisui dropped down on his knees and Itachi stood staring at the man's mask.

"Itachi! Shisui!" A voice called their names and paused "Shisui, you're bleeding! Someone, get him to Kagura right away." Itachi felt someone grab his shoulders roughly and turn him around. It was his father. "Itachi, snap out of it. Itachi!" The voice was coming from far away. He felt someone flick his forehead with a finger. "Answer me Itachi!" The voice was almost desperate.

"Can I have the mask, father?" Itachi turned around and looked back at the dead body. Fugaku was dumbstruck at the question.

"No, son. It belongs to him. You must earn your own mask." He spoke the words quickly as he looked at the boy. "Are you okay?" He noticed that the boy's pants were ripped from sliding on the floor and his knees were scraped up and bleeding, but otherwise appeared unscathed.

"Fugaku!" A man on the other side of the room called to him urgently "There are two bodies in the main kitchen and five in the pantry, and two in the freezer. That bastard took out nine of our people!" He paused. "I'm going to go check on my son." It was Shisui's father that was talking. Fugaku nodded to him in acknowledgement and Toshiro ran out of the room.

"Was Rumiko one of them?" Itachi asked looking around the room for the first time. The room was a complete mess. Ingredients were spilled all over the floor as well as pots, pans, and every conceivable kitchen implement you could think of. Fugaku looked at the three remaining men as they walked around looking at the bodies.

"No. She's not here, thank god. The last thing we need to loose is a young girl. There aren't enough as it is." One of the men answered with a small amount of relief in his voice. Itachi breathed out in relief. Then he suddenly stiffened.

"Where is she?" He asked with a concerned voice.

"Toshiki, see that she is located and let me know if she is okay." He realized what Itachi was getting at. Just because the girl wasn't here, didn't mean the ANBU hadn't killed her somewhere else. Toshiki ran out of the kitchen and they could hear him yelling instructions at some other clansmen down the hall.

"We'll bury our clansmen in the fortress's cemetery this evening. I think under the circumstances dinner will be cancelled. Have one of the teams break out the emergency rations, then dispose of everything in here, and clean it up." His chakra suddenly spiked and he became very angry. Clenching his fist he drove it into a metal cabinet standing next to him. He pulled his fist back and hit it again, then cursed the Anbu using words that Itachi was sure would make his mother blush, resulting in the depletion of liquid soap and one very clean mouth if he were to ever use the same words in front of her. But right now Itachi didn't care. Clenching his teeth tightly, he balled his hands into fists and practically growled the same words his father had just used. It was a very creepy sound coming from a child and the two remaining clansmen felt their spines tingle with fear when they heard it. Fugaku didn't give any indication that he was paying attention.

He picked Itachi up, putting his hand on the boys back and pressing him against his chest, as if trying to reassure himself that the boy was still alive. Father and son could feel each others hearts beating. It should have been reassuring. In any other family it would have been. But to Fugaku and Itachi, it was nothing more than a reminder that while they still lived battle would be the only thing that could calm their rapid heartbeats. "I'm going to take Itachi to Kagura then I'll be right back." He walked quickly out of the kitchen doors.

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Shisui had a concussion and required seven stitches. Itachi had scraped his knees so badly that one knee had to have five stitches and walking was painful if he bent his legs. They were both carried outside to the cemetery behind the fortress. The funeral was a sad occasion. The people killed were Uchiha's, kinsmen, friends. Fugaku sensed the discontent of his clan and knew that he would be dancing on eggshells when the shock wore off and the inevitable calls for revenge started sounding. It was dark out, and cold. Everyone was dressed in their winter clothes, and some had brought blankets for additional warmth. It fell to Fugaku to say the funerary rights and he read the words from a book that Kentaro had provided to him minutes before the ceremony. When it was over, four men and two women grabbed shovels and filled in the graves.

"Itachi, Shisui." Rumiko walked over to them and knelt down to look at them closer. Her eyes and her nose were red. A man and woman stood behind her – Itachi guessed they were her parents. "Thank-you for your concern. I was outside sitting in the sun taking a break. He must have come in right after I left. I could have stopped him…" Her voice fell as she moved her head down to look at the ground.

"It's okay, Rumiko. He probably knew your abilities and waited for you to leave." Fugaku said as he walked up behind them. "You are in the Bingo books of three other nations for a reason, and surely if he did his homework he would have known not to confront you one-on-one."

"Thank-you for the reassurance." She bowed to the clan leader. "I will not let this interfere with my duties here. Mikoto, I will bring you and the children a snack in an hour from the emergency rations. You three should try to eat something." Her parents then mumbled condolences and the three of them walked back into the fortress.

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Itachi and Shisui were commended for their bravery. However, neither of the boys felt all that brave about it. It was a last minute plan driven on by desperation. They weren't even sure it would have worked if Fugaku hadn't shown up and stabbed the guy with his sword. Itachi thought that maybe the adults were humoring them, but no matter. It was over now, and one fact remained. Itachi and Shisui had killed their first man. It was so very different from watching Madara kill the ANBU in the training room. They talked about it a little bit between themselves, but the conversation was stilted. They had both imagined that when they became shinobi and made their first kill they would celebrate and be happy and cheer. But in reality they were scared and desperate during the fight, and empty and in a lot of pain from their injuries afterward. But they decided, finally, after many attempts to talk about it with each other that the bottom line was what mattered. They were alive and the man who tried to kill them was dead. This gave each of the boys new resolve. However, they still felt a sense of unease. Even Itachi, who had been relatively unphased by Madara's fight, was feeling the strain.

Madara returned later than he had planned and when he was informed of the attack he was madder than Kentaro had ever seen him. The news that the boys had to kill someone to defend themselves was not in his plans. "Why were they even alone!" He yelled. The building practically shook with his rage. Kentaro stood still and listened to his masters ranting until he finally calmed down.

"Shisui has gotten over his nightmares. He no longer fears the death of an enemy. Itachi reacted the same as he did the other day." Kentaro finally spoke.

"I shall speak to Shisui myself. I can go straight to his bedroom tonight without his parents knowing. There will be no more training sessions until we return to Konoha. Tell the inner council we will meet at 2am in the chamber." Madara disappeared.

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"Shisui. Wake up." Madara knelt down next to the boy's bed and called to him.

"Huh?" The boy opened his eyes slowly. When he saw Madara he sat straight up, then grabbed his head and swayed. Madara quickly grabbed him and lowered him back onto his bed.

"Just lay still, I don't want you to pass out." His voice was kinder than usual. "How are you feeling about what happened the other day?" Shisui looked at him with a cold expression.

"They…the Hokage…wants us dead. We want them dead so we won't be dead. Umm…" he paused, not sure that what he had just said made sense. Madara smiled at the boy's confusion. Shisui looked up at him for a couple minutes then in a firm voice spoke his heart, "I will kill to protect my friend Itachi, and my parents, and my clan." Then he yelled "I will kill 100 people if I have to! That bastard Hokage will not do this to us again!" The boy was very upset, his face was contorted in anger and tears were running from his eyes.

"Shisui, are you okay in there?" His mothers' voice came from the other side of the door.

"Leave him alone Kisa. If it makes him feel better, let him yell if he wants to." Toshiro's muffled voice was less distinct, but Shisui felt calmed by his father's words.

"He said that, Shisui, because he feels the same way. We all do. I was worried about your words the other day. I don't want anything to come between you and Itachi. You are two completely different people, and you are allowed to have separate identities. But please, don't compare yourself to him. Walk your own path through life, and he will willingly walk beside you as your friend."

"I know. I know that. He doesn't really act like a four-year-old though. I keep forgetting he is younger than me. Plus he is part of the main branch so already he is higher than me. He is the genius of the clan. But I am also smart. Father told me to do my best and the clan will be proud of me no matter what."

"I am glad you are feeling better. Go back to sleep. Tell Itachi that I will see you both back at Konoha when you return. Good night, Shisui." Madara stood up and disappeared.

"He sure likes to do that a lot." Shisui mumbled as closed his eyes. "I wonder if I can get him to teach me how…" He fell asleep before his could finish his sentence.

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Madara's inner council was very tense that night. They wanted blood. The Hokage's blood. Madara sat on his throne and looked at the twenty people seated below him. Haste, at this point, could ruin everything.

"We will stick to our schedule." He started to speak. "There is no other choice in the matter. If anything, we can push it out a few months. But we will not strike sooner." His words were final, and there was no verbal disagreement, although he was sure some of them were cursing him right now. "Kentaro, see to it that Fugaku does not act rashly. He is our backup, although he does not realize it. When he attacks we will set forth our plans. If he acts before we are ready then all will fail."

"Yes. Are you sure he does not realize what is going on?" Kentaro asked.

Madara smirked behind his mask. "He suspects me, yes. He does not want me here as he fears I am a threat to his son's line of succession. He has other reasons to hate me as well. But as long as our plan succeeds he will not stand in our way." He looked at the far wall for a minute, then continued. "We must discuss the sealing ceremony. I need a volunteer…" Kagura interrupted.

"I will conduct the ceremony." Everyone gasped and looked at her. "I will do it."

"Kagura, you don't have to do it. Let one of the elders do it. We are old and you are still in your thirties. You easily have forty or fifty years left." Kentaro spoke to her softly, almost pleading with her to reconsider.

"I cannot live… I feel like…" Her face fell and then her resolve returned. She looked straight up at Madara "I will conduct the sealing ceremony. I am a healer and very experienced with seals. I am the perfect choice. This is my decision – one I have considered for many months now. It's not a last minute thing, or a call for attention. I know what I am doing."

Madara looked down at her. He did not want her to do it, but she was so resolved in her decision. "Then I shall give you one week to back out of your decision. After that it is final." He hoped she would change her mind, but he doubted it would happen.

"One last item. When you return to Konoha be careful. The Hokage has closed himself off to outside influence. He is up to something. It will be harder to pull information on the last few scrolls from the Forbidden Library, so be careful. Luckily it should take only one more trip to finish the job. I am sure he thinks he is close to guessing what exactly we are up to. Because we have been steeling scroll information on several subjects relating to sealing he can narrow it down to about five different activities. What he doesn't know is that the scrolls we actually need were always in our possession. He does not know they even exist." Madara stood up. "That's it for tonight. I will contact you again once we are back in Konoha." Everyone stood up and started walking away. Except Kagura. She stood with her back to the dais and waited until everyone was gone. Slowly she turned around and faced Madara. He walked down the short flight of stairs and stood in front of her.

"If you go through with this, you will never see Obito again. Do you know what happens to the person who conducts the sealing ceremony, Kagura?" Madara spoke in soft voice.

"I know what happens. But I cannot live with the lies I have had to tell. Obito would not approve…he wouldn't approve. I'm not worthy to be called his mother anymore." She was looking at the floor.

"Obito would never say that, you know he would always love you." Kagura's shoulders shook and wet spots appears on the floor as tears dripped out of her eyes. Madara stepped forward and took her in his arms. "He loves you Kagura, you are his mother."

"I know." Kagura said after she composed herself. She pushed away from him as she wiped her tears away.

"You and Kentaro have the hardest jobs. But you two also have the highest hopes for the resurrection of our clan. We have lost too much. Our birth rate is too low, the Kekkei Genkai does not pass down through the generations properly, and we are scorned by the very village I helped to found. The Sharingan is one of the three powerful eye jutsus but unless we act soon it will become extinct." He looked at her. She had composed herself again, but her face was still sad. "And don't forget, the baby. Sasuke. Even though we have plans for him, he is still precious to you. Obito would want it that way."

"Sasuke. Did you choose the name?" Kagura smiled.

"Yes. Does it please you?" He smiled back at her.

"Very much. I wanted a second child, once, long ago. His name would have…Thank-you Madara. I feel much better now. I will conduct the ceremony, and the clan will be re-born." She bowed to the tall man, then left the chamber in better spirits than she had been in for months.

"Kagura. I hope you change your mind." Madara spoke to the empty chamber.

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On the day before their return to Konoha Itachi woke up feeling something soft and furry against his chin. He looked down and one of the ninja cats had crawled under his blankets and worked his way into Itachi's arms. "Go back to sleep. I'm too comfortable to move." The cat said lazily.

"Okay." Itachi closed his eyes again.

"Itachi!" Mikoto said as she opened the bedroom door. "Get up and have some breakfast. We have your favorite out here – cardboard flakes and white liquid stuff." Itachi wondered what she was talking about, but didn't move. Mikoto walked in the room and lifted the cat off the bed and put him on the floor. "Aren't you supposed to be in a meeting with Fugaku?"

The cat stretched and yawned. "Where is he?"

"At the table in the other room. Reading the label on the cardboard flakes. He thinks he tasted sawdust and is looked for the ingredients." The cat trotted out of the bedroom.

"Come on Itachi, it's 10am. You can get up, have something to eat and then take a nap later. Okay?" She sat down on the side of the bed as Itachi sat up. "We are going back home tomorrow. So this is our last day here. I'm sorry it was such a bad experience for you." She put her hand softly on his knee. "How are you feeling?"

"It doesn't hurt so much now." Itachi said lazily.

"Kagura was able to heal the scratches, but the muscles have to heal on their own so it was bound to be sore for a while." She stood up, "Come on out when you get dressed."

Mikoto walked back into the common room and noticed that Fugaku was still reading the box. The food was gone, but then again, why was the cat sitting next to the bowl washing his paws and purring?

"Fugaku, did you eat your cereal, or did the cat eat it for you?"

"Oh! I got to go, important meeting. Come on cat." Fugaku got up, grabbed his jacket and left with a cat sitting on his shoulder.

"Did the cat leave?" Itachi asked quietly as he walked out of his bedroom.

"Yes he left. Do you know what that means?" Mikoto looked down at him with her hands on her hips.

"I have to eat my own cereal." He looked at the box on the table. "Is there any sugar?" He asked hopefully.

"Yes, there is." Her gaze softened and she pushed a brown bag toward her son. He picked up a spoon and shoveled several spoonfuls into the cereal. Mikoto started to say something, but decided that after such a bad two weeks, a little extra sugar probably wasn't going to hurt him. As it turned out, it didn't. He spent a couple hours coloring, then took a three hour nap. Maybe the sugar was made out of sawdust too? So much for the emergency supplies.

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After he left his quarters Fugaku walked down the hall to medium sized room that he had been using for meetings for the last two weeks. He walked inside and was greeted by about thirty people. There wasn't a lot of room for that many people so some were standing against the wall instead of sitting on mats. Fugaku sat down on a mat in front of them.

"Is everyone here?" He asked.

"Everyone you asked for is here." Kentaro confirmed. The men and women in the room consisted of the clan's top shinobi and the elder council.

Fugaku looked around the room. He almost smiled when he saw Rumiko holding hands with a young man. Her father was watching them out of the corner of his eye. He recognized the young man as one of the transfers from Wind country. He had volunteered to move to the capital. 'Now we know why.' Fugaku said to himself.

"Three ninja cats were left in Konoha to monitor the Uchiha compound. As expected, the Hokage tried to dismantle the barrier. Failing that, he tried to send people in with various protections. Five ninja died in the attempts. The barrier stands strong. Part of the jutsu is that only the person who knows the code to dismantle the barrier can remove it. The Fourth is extremely skilled at seals, having studied them since he was a genin. I had every expectation that the seal would hold, but against his genius there was a possibility it would fail. Luckily, the seal held. When we return to the village we will remove the seal, then you will all guard the compound as the rest enter. Once everyone is inside keep watch for anyone who does not belong there. In the confusion of unpacking and routing supplies more ANBU may show up to spy on us. Watch what you say and report or eliminate any threat. I leave it to your discretion which of the two methods you wish to use to deal with any potential problems.

"The capital shinobi may leave two days later, after everything is back to normal. You will be sleeping in the temple during that time. It is equipped as a temporary barracks for occasions like this so it should be fairly comfortable." He paused and noticed that everyone in the room was looking at him with strong intent. They were still pissed about the ANBU, and the murders of their kin.

"The fact that Hokage was willing to sacrifice so many ANBU says a lot about how far he is willing to go. The Fourth does not believe in needlessly killing and would not have done this if he didn't feel justified. We found twelve ANBU, but we may not have found them all. We have to assume that some information got back to Konoha. Sometimes damage control is better than no control at all. When we return to Konoha I will be looking for that damage and deal with it myself."

"When we return to Konoha, it is possible there will be a confrontation. Do not act unless I give you the order. We do not need to have a stand-off turn into a blood bath. I want as few people dying as possible." He paused and looked at the people in the room. "If anything happens to me, Itachi is my heir and elder Kentaro is his advisor until he turns twelve. That is all. You are dismissed." The men and women slowly walked through the door, their next job was packing for the two day ride back home.

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The journey back was pretty much the same as before. Kisa, Shisui and Itachi shared a wagon while Mikoto, Kagura and Saiyu shared a wagon. Only this time, the ninja cats stayed with Mikoto as well. The purring sound they made as they rested against her head helped her motion / morning sickness and she was able eat and drink a small amount.

Itachi and Shisui mainly stayed in the wagon. Running into the ANBU in the kitchen was still on their minds, plus neither of them felt well. They weren't sick, they just didn't feel normal. Kagura said it was stress and gave them some soldier pills with extra vitamins, hoping it would prevent them from catching a virus in their weakened state. She was sure that as soon as they got a good nights sleep in their own safe beds they would be back to normal in no time at all.

Fugaku was walking behind the caravan, when he heard the gossip. He had been feeling a little angry again with his wife and son both being under the weather in front of the entire clan. He wanted them to be strong. But the clan saw it another way. The voices, somewhere behind him, said that Itachi was a brave and strong little boy who could stand up to his father. He was a genius who took on a full grown ANBU and won. He would lead them into a glorious future. The Sharingan was sure to be stronger in him than anyone else ever. All flattery, yes, but hey, what father wouldn't gloat if he heard those things about his son? Well, they forgot to mention how cute he is when he smiles, or how innocent he looks in his little kitty slippers…'Okay, Fugaku, snap out of it you're supposed to be on guard duty.' He said to himself, smiling.

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When they entered the Konoha front gates they could see the Fourth standing on the roof of a nearby temple. He had a very good view of the Uchiha compound from his perch. Fugaku looked up at him, then halted the caravan. He motioned for the selected shinobi to follow him. They again positioned themselves around the compound. This time, though, the Konoha citizens were showing up to watch. It was only around 8pm so everyone was still awake. Fugaku would have preferred to do this several hours later, but Mikoto, Itachi and Shisui needed to get out of the ox carts and into their own beds.

The dome seal was quite impressive. It could be seen from all over Konoha and had been the talk of the town for the last two weeks. By the time the clansmen were ready to dispel the seal there were about three hundred spectators perched on roofs, trees, and on the ground. Several of the Uchiha and village shinobi had taken it on themselves to act as crowd control to keep people away from the seal until it was gone. Fugaku raised his hand in the air and looked around to make sure he had everyone's attention. He dropped his hand. Immediately they formed seals, bit their thumbs to draw blood, wiped the blood across both palms then put their hands two inches from the seal. Each of the clansmen quietly chanted the dispel code. The red dome started to flicker and grow unstable. The clansmen then pushed their hands into the dome and yelled "Kai!". The dome disappeared. Fugaku jumped down, followed by the other Uchiha shinobi and they preceded the caravan into the compound. Then the last cart entered and the compound's gates were closed.

The two carts that Itachi and Mikoto were riding in drove straight to Fugaku's house. Everyone got out of the carts and stretched. Itachi and Shisui agreed that they already felt better and Mikoto was smiling because she also felt better. She felt a little sick, but she didn't feel week or groggy. Kentaro joined the small group and stood next to his wife. Kagura's husband jumped down from the roof and declared that the house was safe to enter. Toshiro walked up the sidewalk and told them that the temple was also secure. They stood around making small talk when suddenly Fugaku smirked and spoke to someone in a loud voice.

"So. What took you so long to get here? I've been waiting for a whole thirty minutes." Itachi and Shisui looked around wondering who he was talking to. The others had their Sharingans activated and were looked at the roof of the house behind Fugaku. The boys followed their gaze and gasped. The Fourth, as well as Two-hundred ninja were perched on houses, trees, and on the ground around them. Behind the Konoha shinobi, the Uchiha shinobi utilized the body flicker technique to surround Fugaku and the people around him. No one spoke. Both sides had their orders that no one was to strike without their leaders consent, and they all followed that order. Itachi and Shisui both moved closer to their mothers. Mikoto feared that Itachi would be crushed if something happened so she picked him up. He was still very small. The boy gazed up at the Fourth, still standing on the roof of their house. His long blond hair and long white jacket were blowing behind him in the wind. He looked like he was thinking hard about what he wanted to do next.

"_I am here Itachi do not fear. Nothing will happen to your father_." Itachi heard Madara's words in his mind and looked around. He looked at Kentaro, who met his gaze and nodded his head. He caught Shisui's gaze next and apparently he had heard Madara's voice as well. He noticed then that the Fourth was not looking at Fugaku. He was scanning the surrounding area. He stood there for about fifteen minutes, like he was waiting for something.

'He is looking for Madara.' Itachi deduced. Itachi started looking around the area too.

"_Itachi, you are drawing attention to yourself."_ He heard Madara's voice again. Itachi looked back at the Fourth and noticed the man was looking straight at him, as was Fugaku. Itachi was now very scared_. "Calm down Itachi. I will let nothing happen to you."_ Itachi broke his gaze from the Fourth and looked down at the ground. The Fourth then continued to look around the area for several more minutes before finally speaking.

"I know you are here. You refuse to show yourself openly. Very well. I will wait until you are ready. Until then, I shall deal with your subordinate." He turned and looked down at Fugaku and spoke in a clear, distinct voice.

"Fugaku Uchiha, chief of police, and head of the Uchiha clan, you are under arrest for espionage. You will be taken into custody by the ANBU this very night and imprisoned until your trial. There will be no bail, and no visitors allowed. You are to be kept in isolation. Should you be found guilty you will be executed and your clan disbanded."

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**Another cliffhanger… It's really getting interesting.**

**If you review Itachi will share some of his sugar with you (if there is any left)**

**Next week, Fugaku moves into a jail cell while his clan tries to adjust. Madara and Kentaro work on a plan to get him released. Itachi turns five.**

**Put this story on your story alerts list and you will receive an e-mail when the next chapter posts.**

**I post chapters on Fridays. I like Fridays.**


	7. Chapter 7 Jail

**In the previous chapter Madara killed an ANBU** **in front of Itachi and Shisui. Later the boys were attacked by an ANBU when they were alone and ended up stabbing him in the chest the same time Fugaku showed up and stabbed him through the back. The ANBU had killed nine clansman. Madara called his council together and Kagura volunteered to conduct the sealing ceremony but he hopes she changes her mind. Fugaku also called a meeting of his experienced shinobi and tells them to not act rashly. The gathering ends and they return to the village. However, shortly after they arrive the Fourth Hokage confronts the clan with 200 backup ninja and informs Fugaku that he is under arrest for espionage. **

**Don't forget to review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Although, since he is apparently finished with Deidara, do you think he'll let me have him? **

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**Chapter 7 - Jail**

The dark January night was cold, and a light sprinkling of rain had started coming down. Someone draped a jacket over Itachi and Mikoto's heads and Kisa was holding Shisui close to her and using her jacket to cover his head. The Fourth had just announced that Fugaku was under arrest and the silence that had fallen on the people, both Uchiha and Konoha ninja, was absolute.

The Konoha ninja hadn't been told why they were called to back up the Fourth and were understandably shocked. Why would anyone arrest a powerful clan leader? It sounded absurd. In the feudal-style of government that all nations in their world followed a clan chief of one of the great clans had almost as much immunity as a feudal lord. They couldn't even remember the last time a feudal lord had been arrested. Well, they assassinated a few occasionally, but that was different.

"Fugaku Uchiha. Will you surrender willingly and accept our judgment in connection to the accusation of espionage?" The Fourth looked down at the clan leader from his perch on the roof. The Uchiha ninja standing around Fugaku were on alert but were blocking their chakra. They were acting very passive. On the other hand Minato was feeling shock and fear coming from a lot of the village ninja he had brought with him. He was very aware of the reputation the Uchiha clan had, and of course, the legends and rumors that spawned a life of their own over the years. He was going to have to wrap this up soon. If a fight broke out there would be massive casualties on both sides. That was not his intention. He jumped down in front of Fugaku. Fugaku was smirking and his Sharingan eyes blazed red in the orange glow of the electric street lights.

"I will go with you willingly. However, I do not accept your right to judge me." He looked over at his son. "Itachi, should anything happen, Kentaro will be your guardian until you turn twelve."

Itachi put his hands together as if praying and bowed his head to his father. "Yes father. The clan is my life and I accept the responsibility." Kentaro also bowed and said he also accepted the responsibility. The other Uchiha knelt down on one knee to show their acceptance of his decision. They stood up and continued to look at the Fourth.

The rain fell heavier as Fugaku held out his wrists and smirked at the Fourth. "Don't forget to bind me, I might want to escape." Minato Namikaze, Fourth Hokage of Konoha walked up to one of the most dangerous men in all of the Shinobi nations and placed chakra restraining ropes around his arms. He then walked in front of him to an already prepared cell hundreds of feet below ground in a building used by the torture and interrogation squad. The Konoha ninja followed them the entire way. The closer they got to the building, the heavier the rainfall. Both Minato and Fugaku had passing thoughts about the purpose of the rain but they also both disregarded those thoughts in favor of the present predicament.

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From his perch on the First Hokage's sculptured head Madara watched the village as it slowly went to sleep. He had been among the two-hundred shinobi that had appeared in the Uchiha compound earlier. While Fugaku was being processed (searched, given a prison jumpsuit, fingerprinted, etc) he had also checked out the cell that the clan leader was going to be placed in. Now, he was standing in the rain with his hands cupped in front of him.

"How dramatic." He gave a short laugh and watched as rainwater collected in his hands. "Perhaps I should have brought an umbrella."

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The next day Itachi woke up shivering. The curtains were closed, but he could hear the rain hitting the windows. Except for being cold he was very glad to be home in his own bed. The last two weeks were very eventful, he wasn't sure he really wanted to go to another gathering. But last night was…what? Itachi didn't understand what happened. He knew that his father was arrested by the Fourth, and that he was now in charge of the clan until his father came back. However, because he was so young Kentaro was actually the one in charge. After his father was lead away Kagura and Kentaro had walked Mikoto and himself into the house. Kagura put Itachi to bed then sat with him until he fell asleep. She was there when he woke up a couple times during the night. He could hear talking at one point, distantly from another room, but Kagura shut the door to block the sound and he had fallen back to sleep.

Kagura walked into Itachi's bedroom with a tray of food. She set it down on the small desk then sat down on the bed next to him. "How are you feeling?" She put a hand on his forehead.

"Cold." His teeth started to chatter. Kagura's brow creased. After she had put the boy to bed she realized he was running a fever. She wasn't too surprised at that, but still, it was bad timing. His whole body stated to shiver violently and she noticed the hair on his arms was standing straight up.

"This isn't good." She said out loud. "Kentaro!"

"Yes, what is it?" He poked his head in Itachi's room.

"Itachi is sick."

"Hmmm. I bet Shisui is also sick." He walked into the room and looked at the little boy shivering under the covers. "Can you use your chakra to adjust the fever?"

"I'll start with chakra. I'd like to see if I can bring down the fever without medication. Small children seem to suffer more side-effects when medicated, but have someone ready in case I need them to run to the hospital to get some if needed. Also, could someone check on Shisui as well? If he is sick tell Kisa that I'll be down there after I get Itachi stabilized."

Well, it turned out that both boys had contracted a minor virus. It was expected to last only a couple days. Shisui wasn't very happy. He had been looking forward to returning to school, and now he was going to have to wait. Itachi wasn't very happy either, he wanted to train.

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That night Madara and Kentaro met in the Uchiha secret chamber. It was still pouring outside and Kentaro had left a very wet umbrella, muddy boots and a sopping wet overcoat at the entrance of the temple. He knelt down in front of Madara and greeted him, then stood up.

"Fugaku is being held deep underground in the torture and interrogation building." Madara began. "He has not said anything since they placed him there and is spending his time meditating. The ANBU holding him have orders not let him see or hear them for one week."

"Should we bust him out?" Kentaro asked.

Madara sighed. "The Fourth is after me. He will not hold Fugaku for long. A few weeks maybe. Your clan leader is in no danger. We will leave him there for now. How is Itachi taking this?"

"He has caught a virus and spent most of the day asleep. He wanted to get up and do some training but Kagura wouldn't let him. People were coming by all day to console Mikoto, but we kept them away from Itachi. Mikoto isn't worried about Fugaku. She knows he is strong and suspects the Hokage is bluffing, although she can't think of a reason why he would do that."

"Sounds like everything is under control. Itachi is becoming very focused on his training."

"He doesn't watch his cartoons much anymore and the games he and Shisui play with the action figures have become rather violent." Kentaro was smiling. "He's growing up fast, just as you wanted."

"Yes, he is." Madara also smiled under his mask.

"So, if that is all, I guess I'll go back outside and try not drown. What is with this rain anyway? Is it going to rain the entire time Fugaku is imprisoned?"

"The rain. Yeah." Madara gave a small laugh. "Don't worry about it. It's still winter after all. At least you live nearby. You can go now, we will have our regular meeting later in the week as scheduled so tell the others to be prepared."

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Two nights later a contingent of four Uchiha shinobi, three men and one woman entered the Forbidden library for the last time. They spent thirty minutes undoing the seals and jutsus that had been placed in the room, then moved silently to remove the scrolls they had been assigned. Opening the scrolls they quickly memorized them and put them back. When they finished they spent another thirty minutes replacing the seals and jutsus, then left. The Fourth never found out about the last break-in.

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Fugaku finished his meal of rice and "mystery meat" and shoved the small tin plate through the thin slit at the bottom of the door. He reckoned he had been in the small cell for seven days. He had neither seen nor heard another human being since he was imprisoned. The overhead light was very bright and was never turned off. A futon with one blanket, a sink, and a toilet were the only furnishings. He also found six cameras, six speakers and six microphones. The door and walls were sealed so that if he touched them he would get a shock. The cell itself was about ten square feet with no windows (since it was underground). He spent his time meditating and doing warm-up exercises. He was careful not speak or show emotion.

On the seventh day of his incarceration a voice was suddenly heard coming out of one of the speakers.

"Fugaku Uchiha. You are required to answer the following questions truthfully and succinctly. Why were the scrolls being stolen?" The voice waited three minutes exactly.

"Who is the man pulling the strings behind the Uchiha clan?" The voice waited another three minutes.

"What are the names of the other's involved?" Again the voice waited three minutes.

"We know you injured your son severely on two separate occasions. Why were you trying to kill him?" He waited another three minutes.

"We know you injured your wife severely on two separate occasions. Why were you trying to kill her?" He waited another three minutes.

"We know the father of your wife's baby is not you. Why is she cheating on you?" Three more minutes went by.

"What was the reason your father was executed by the Uchiha clan?" Three more minutes.

Fugaku listened to the questions, but made no attempt to answer them. In total they asked about 30 questions. Almost all of them were red-herrings. Questions designed to throw him off. The question about the unborn baby was a red-herring. Fugaku almost smirked at that. If only they knew… But he would never tell. The questioning continued every thirty minutes. The bright light was designed to make him forget what time it was, and the questions were designed to irritate him. Neither worked. Fugaku slept with no problems and continued to meditate.

One thing he thought a lot about was the new baby. He was actually looking forward to the baby this time. In a lot of ways, this baby would have more opportunity than Itachi. He or she would not be held down by shackles of clan leadership. The child could grow up to be a ditch digger for all the clan cared. Itachi, on the other hand, was a book that had already been written. The clan heir, no matter how much of a genius he might be, could only be the clan heir. How often he had thought that while looking into his son's face. The anger that sometimes surfaced when he thought of how his son was being tied down and restrained, he would never have a chance to show his true power. Yes, the boy was a true genius, and he would become the most powerful ninja in the clan, perhaps the village, but it would be restrained and tempered by endless meetings, and meaningless missions for the police station. It was just a lot of boring, non-action type activities most of the time.

Fugaku opened his eyes. He was sitting on the floor, meditating, and had fallen asleep. The constant questioning was actually making him sleepy instead of annoying him. Actually, being the clan leader, he had learned to ignore talking a long time ago. 'I wonder how long I'll be here before they get bored and let me go?' he thought to himself. 'The last raid on the Forbidden library should have occurred by now, and the scrolls will go to the last team selected for training. The Hokage is barking up the wrong tree, coming after me. But if he wants to waste time, I'll play along.' He got up and moved to the futon, falling asleep as soon as he lay down.

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February came and the rain kept falling. Four weeks after he had been arrested Fugaku's cell finally opened and the Hokage Minato Namikaze walked into the small room.

"You are as resilient as I expected." His stern expression betrayed very little emotion. Fugaku stood up and looked at him. "Follow me." Minato turned around and walked out of the cell without looking to see if Fugaku was following. The two men made their way up to another level and into a conference room. There was a large table and about twenty chairs placed around it. A VCR and TV were at one end of the room. The Fourth closed the door after Fugaku walked in. They both sat down, facing each other across the table.

"Fugaku. You have answered none of my questions. Would you like to answer some of them now? Specifically, who is pulling the strings behind the scenes?"

Fugaku let out a small laugh. "I pull all the strings in my clan."

Minato laughed back at him. "I don't think so." His voice was mocking. "There was only ever one other person, besides the First Hokage, experienced enough to open the seals of the Forbidden library. Where is he?"

"I don't know who or what you are talking about." The man smirked.

"I made contact with a few of your clan members and was able to retrieve information from them. They willingly gave us information in exchange for immunity from prosecution. They provided me with proof."

"Yondaime. Your 'informants' are dead. _I_ arranged for one of your ANBU to kill them. All nine of them." Fugaku smiled as the Hokage's eyes revealed shock. The plan had almost backfired when Itachi and Shisui got in the middle of the fight, but Fugaku didn't reveal that part. This plan was only known to himself and Kentaro.

"How could you… Your own people! You are despicable." Minato almost spat the words. Every time he thought he had the clan leader cornered he pushed a wall down.

"Humph." Fugaku grunted, "_How could I_? They were traitors. They received a traitors death. Pure and simple. As the lord over my clan I hold their lives in the palm of my hand. They follow my orders, or die."

"And your son? He will be five next month. Is he part of your plan?"

"Itachi is the heir to the clan. His life is a closed book. He is part of a plan created by the entire clan. Each member has an ideal of what he is, what he is supposed to be. He must pull the book off the shelf and read it, but he is not allowed to add pages, nor am I. If you are asking if I will harm my child, then the answer is maybe. It depends on the circumstances. My wife now bears a second child who will replace Itachi should he be deemed inappropriate for the position." Fugaku's voice was cold and very direct. His Sharingan eyes bored holes into the man sitting across from him. Minato was shocked at the man's coldness when speaking of his eldest child. He and his wife had been trying for a few months to have a child and he could only imagine good things and happiness for his firstborn, yet this man, Fugaku, saw his son's life as a test of leadership and power. If he failed…

"If he fails your expectations, will you kill him?"

"Yes." Fugaku's gaze never wavered.

"I have no idea whether I should believe you or not. But you are a cold man."

"Say what you want, but remember. This is a cold world."

"Fugaku. Tell me where to find Madara Uchiha." Minato finally got to the point.

"This line of questioning is pointless."

"Is he staying in the Uchiha clan temple?"

"We cannot discuss this."

"Is he the one pulling the strings?"

"Do not ask any more questions."

Minato sat back in his chair. "I am going to release you and drop the charges. However, I am still gathering intelligence on the situation. If I find that your clan is plotting against Konoha I will have the clan lord arrested and executed."

"Even if it is a five year old boy?" Minato's face registered shock at this. "Why Yondaime, you are a cold man." Fugaku took great pleasure at throwing the man's words back at him.

Minato stood up. "Follow me." They both walked out of the room and up to reception.

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That evening Minato was standing in his office looking out the windows at Konoha. The rain had stopped as soon as Fugaku was outside and now there were stars showing between the clouds. The Hokage had always liked looking at the stars. It was times like this that he wished he was a sensei again with Kakashi, Rin and Obito. It had been almost a year since that last mission, but it seemed much longer than that. Obito had been very proud of his clan, yet he never felt like he lived up to their expectations. Well, that wasn't an unusual feeling for a thirteen year old. He had his own personality and dreams, but as a member of the main branch his life was set in stone already. Or as Fugaku had expressed it "a closed book". But Obito was the reason he was standing here. In the memory of his student, he would protect the boys clan, and he would protect the village that clan belonged to.

"Fugaku, I understand now what is going on. You are a smart man, but you are in way over your head. If you could only trust me I could help you fight. As it is, I must keep watch and wait for you to attack. Please don't do anything rash. I wish to fight alongside you, not against you." He rested his head on the cold window and closed his eyes.

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Fugaku returned to his clan and was proud to see that they had not lost their heads and done anything rash. They had followed his orders. Of course, the one order he was slightly regretting was the one asking for personal reports of any questions the clan members were asked by the Hokage. He had a few dozen reports to read (some people had been questioned multiple times). He didn't really learn anything from all that reading. The questions were very basic, almost meaningless. It was obvious that Minato was wasting time.

"That probably means he already knows what is going on." Fugaku spoke out loud to the empty room. It was early morning a few days after he had been released. Things had been pretty hectic and he was glad to finally have a few quiet minutes to himself.

"Arghhh! Stupid cat! Quit tripping me!" A child's voice rang out from the hallway.

"So much for the quiet." He gave a small laugh then called out "Itachi! Why aren't you in bed!" A few seconds later the sliding door opened and Itachi walked into the small room. He bowed to his father.

"I am sorry to have disturbed you. I will return to my room now."

"What were you doing?" He suspected he knew.

"I was outside training, but the cat kept tripping me so I decided to go back to bed." Itachi gave a dirty look to the ninja cat, who was innocently cleaning his paw.

"Yeah, I thought you might have been doing that. Good night Itachi." Itachi bowed again and walked back into the hall. "Cat! You stay here."

"Aw! I didn't do anything wrong. I was just having some fun with the kitten." It cats could smirk, then that cat would have given one hell of a big smirk.

"You two can play tomorrow. Right now I'd like to know if any more Anbu have been spotted at the Uchiha hideout."

"No. There have been no more sightings. Why aren't you asking Kentaro? He's your second, after all. Don't you trust him?" The cat closed one eye and looked at him slyly.

"I did ask Kentaro, but you have a different method of obtaining facts than he does, so I wanted to hear your opinion. Now you go to bed too."

"Ha ha ha ha!" The cat laughed and walked down to hall to the "kitten's" bedroom.

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March came and the days grew longer. Itachi's fifth birthday was just a small party with his mother, Shisui, Kisa, Kagura and Saiyu gathered in the dining room around a big cake with lots of frosting, ice cream, and gifts. Itachi was happy, he had gotten more shuriken from his father, two books of strategies for the games "Go" and "Shogi" from his mother, another book "Amazing Jutsu's for beginners" from Shisui and his parents, throwing stars from Kagura, and a book on Taijutsu from Saiyu and Kentaro. All of the gifts were designed to help him become a great ninja. He could hardly wait to start training with them. But the best present was yet to come.

"Itachi," Mikoto looked proudly at her son, who returned her look with curiosity. "You have been accepted into the academy for Summer quarter. A whole year early! Isn't that exciting!"

The boy's eyes grew three sizes larger and his mouth opened three times before he could get any words out. "Mother! Thank-you! I get to school! I'm going to be the best ninja ever!" He jumped out of his seat and gave his mother a big hug, and Mikoto hugged him back tightly. She was pleased for him, and very proud, but she had the same feelings in the pit of her stomach that all mothers developed when sending their children to an academy that taught warfare. It was a bad feeling of foreboding and loss, and for the briefest of seconds she felt like she was hugging a corpse.

Kagura caught Mikoto's eye and gave her a sad smile, "Well, who wants another piece of cake to celebrate?" She said trying sound cheerful. Of course everyone did.

Shisui was excited about having Itachi attending the academy; even though they would be in separate classes they could still stay after and practice in the school training ground. The school had several areas for shuriken and throwing stars practice, a Taijutsu field, logs for practicing kicks, and a large gym they could use if it rained. Usually only the best students stayed late for extra practice so it was a chance to see how skilled the older students were.

"When does Summer quarter begin?" Itachi asked.

"July." His mother answered "About the same time as your new sister or brother is born. It's going to be a great month."

"It'll be like getting two presents!" Itachi said with a big smile.

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Madara looked down at the two boys. His training sessions with them had been infrequent, but they always practiced on their own if he wasn't around. Today they had been training in the warm Spring morning for three hours. Both boys were becoming much better with their Taijutsu so today he had focused his training on how to get back into a fight after being knocked down.

"Sometimes, pretending to loose a fight is a good way to put your opponent off guard. He will think he has won and stop fighting. When that happens you spring back to life and attack. However, the trick is to make it look convincing. Often that means letting your opponent beat you up, get some blood flowing, stagger around a little, then collapse. The important thing to remember is that when a person faints, he does _not_ look where he is going to fall first."

The boys practiced falling until lunch time, then they all sat in the sun while the boys ate their lunches. Madara would never eat in front of the boys, saying that he preferred to skip lunch eat a big breakfast and dinner. Itachi and Shisui figured he just didn't want to remove his mask.

"Since you will be starting school in a few months, Itachi, I want to tell you a little bit about the Uchiha clan." Itachi looked up at Madara, giving him his full attention. "Our clan is, simply put, the best. We have a destiny above and beyond that of ordinary ninjas. Our eye jutsu is one of the three powerful jutsus brought forth into this world. It is to be defended and passed down to new generations. The weakness of those who would limit its potential is to be shunned. If you are strong and show your pride for the Sharingan, the Sharingan will give you unlimited power. The Uchiha body is designed to hold the Sharingan and must be trained." His deep voice paused. The two young boys were looking up at him listening to every word.

"When will we get the Sharingan?" Itachi asked.

"That is hard to say. Most people get the ability around eleven to fourteen years of age, though some have been known to show it sooner, and some even later. Generally it shows itself in a period of high stress, when you are putting your life on the line. Fugaku received his sharingan when he was loosing a fight. He decided he wasn't going to loose, no matter what and suddenly the sharingan showed him a way to win. Mikoto got hers when her teammate was killed. She swore she would take revenge and her determination in the ensuing fight brought forth the sharingan and victory. Generally those two stories are typical situations. You could probably find some variation of them from most of the sharingan users."

"Yeah – my parents were the other way. My father was the one out for revenge and my mother was the one loosing the fight. My mother was 17 when she got her Sharingan. She said that was pretty old."

"Your parents are very powerful Shisui. It wasn't so much that your mother was never in danger before, as it was the fact that she was one of the best Taijutsu users in her age group and could beat the shit out of anyone that challenged her. Until she challenged the wrong person that is." He chuckled slightly. "But it ended well enough."

"How old were you when you got your Sharingan?" Itachi asked Madara.

"I can't remember that far back. You know, the mind's the first thing to go when you turn 100." He laughed at them.

"Ah! You just don't want to tell!" Shisui teased him. Itachi smiled and shoved his empty lunchbox back into his backpack.

"Well! Back to work! What do you say I teach you how to backflip off of a tree while running full speed?" Madara stood up and the boys nodded their heads.

It was a few hours later when they finally made their way back to Konoha. They had both mastered the tree flip, although Madara did have to heal a few bloody noses in the process. Neither boy cared much about the pain, they both wanted to succeed. They had changed their clothes before walking home. The first time they walked into the village with blood on them the gate guard had freaked, convinced that some bully was picking on the two innocent, week little boys and had held them up for 15 minutes questioning them. After that they always brought a change of clothes to wear on the return trip.

They were walking down the dirt road that ran through the forest. After a few minutes the forest opened up to reveal a large meadow of green grass. Standing in the field with his back to them was an older boy. He was wearing black shorts, tan shirt, and had a bandanna tied around his forehead. His short black hair was blowing slightly in the soft wind. Itachi pointed to him and asked Shisui if he knew who he was.

"He's a couple years older than me so he is in a different class. His name is Yota Hyuuga. He likes to pick on the other kids and steel their money." Shisui sneered as he answered. He really hated that kid.

"I bet that doesn't work so well when he tries to take your money." Itachi laughed.

"He's never tried. He stays away from me." His gaze was eating holes in Yota's back.

"Ah. Uchiha." Yota slowly turned around. "I thought something smelled…bad."

"The only thing that smells bad around here is you, Yota." Shisui replied in a calm voice.

"Uchiha are a weak clan, and you two are the weakest." He also spoke in a calm voice as he walked up to the boys. Stopping a few feet away he activated his Byakugan and looked at them. Both boys were calm. Well, he would think of a way to irritate them. "Uchiha suck, big time. You probably need your mommy to wipe your ass! Of course, she's probably too stupid to find it so that must be why you guys stink so much." He paused to see if he was getting a reaction. Nope. Both boys were just staring at him. "I guess you guys are retarted? Yeah, must be."

Shisui laughed, "You mispronounced 'retarded' you retard!" Shisui laughed even harder. Itachi just looked straight ahead with no emotion on his face.

"Oh yeah! Well, you piece of Uchiha side-branch scum, what are you going to do about it? Chicken out and run home to mommy crying? Even the village hates you all. Why else would the Hokage arrest your leader? Because you are all worthless, powerless, weak Uchiha barf bags. That's why you run the police station, because you're too weak to be real Ninja." He suddenly paused when an overwhelming chakra started emanating from the smallest of the two boys in front of him. Shisui involuntarily stepped away from Itachi. "Aw! How cute, the itty bitty boy is being…Arggghh!" Itachi attacked.

The two boys fought each other using all the Taijutsu they had learned. Itachi was a fierce opponent who used his small size to duck under Yota's legs. He could also jump higher than Yota. Yota tried again and again to gain a foothold in order to get close enough to touch the boy, but he couldn't manage it. Itachi was fast and Yota was, to put it succinctly, not the best student. He rarely practiced. Soon Itachi had knocked Yota to the ground by grabbing the back of his shirt, pulling, and kicking his legs out from under him. Yota fell hard on his ass, feeling the jolt through his entire spinal column. He tried to turn around and stand up but Itachi quickly kicked Yota in the face with the flat of his foot. The boy's nose began to bleed.

"Stop it! Stop it! What is wrong with you!" Yota pleaded. Itachi ignored him. He slammed his foot into the boys chest. Yota quickly stood up and jumped at Itachi, but Itachi moved out of his way and kicked him in the back. Yota staggered a few feet, then turned around and launched himself at Itachi again. Itachi moved out of the way and kicked Yota in the stomach, hard. Yota dropped to the ground hunched over and holding his stomach. The pain and nausea were awful. He threw up. Itachi kicked him again in the side and the head and kept kicking him. Soon Yota stopped moving. He wasn't making any noise at all.

"Itachi! He's down, stop it! Get off of him!" Shisui ran up and tried to pull his friend away from Yota, but Itachi pushed Shisui away. For some reason he seemed much stronger than in practice. "Itachi! Stop!" Shisui was shrieking as he again tried to pull him away and ended up being shoved on his back. Suddenly something streaked past him.

"Itachi!" Fugaku stood in front of Shisui. He had grabbed Itachi and was now holding him against his chest with one arm wrapped around the boys chest and arms and his other arm holding down the boy's legs. Another man suddenly appeared and knelt on the ground to look at the boy.

"Is that your son! How dare he do this to my boy!" The man was livid.

"Be careful what you say Hyuuga. You are no match for me." Fugaku's Sharingan blazed and his chakra spiked ominously. The man looked at Fugaku like he wanted to rip him into a million pieces.

Fugaku returned the gaze. "Do you want to fight, or do you want to take your son to the medics?" Without saying anything the man gathered Yota up in his arms and ran back down the road toward the village.

Shisui breathed a sigh of relief as both Fugaku and Itachi's chakra went back to normal.

"Are we that scary, Shisui?" Fugaku smirked at the boy.

"Yes. I hope I can be like you someday. That chakra was awesome!" Shisui wondered if he could get Madara to teach him how to spike his chakra like Fugaku and Itachi. It would be massively useful.

Fugaku placed Itachi back on his feet. He stared at the boy for a couple minutes wondering what to do. His five year old son had just been perfectly willing to kick that boy to death. There was no way Kentaro was going to talk him out of his suspicions this time. There was no question about it. Itachi had inherited his grandfather's psychopathic tendencies. That scared Fugaku. Even though his father had been the clan leader, the clan still passed judgment on the man and executed him. He had been extremely powerful, and near the end, coldly calculating. He had killed a lot of people, and not all of them in the line of duty. He did it to see how good he was at it, so he could brag about his accomplishments. He resisted the urge to shudder.

"Itachi. When your opponent falls, you stop the attack. You went too far with that boy. Do you realize you could have killed him?" Itachi looked up at his father with an expression that told him in no uncertain terms that he did realize just that. Fugaku raised his hand and hit Itachi, knocking him to the ground. He then turned his back on his son, trying to get himself under control. "Itachi. I think it would be better if you stayed with Shisui tonight." He walked away, afraid of what he might do if he stayed.

"Itachi?" Shisui knelt down next to Itachi. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I guess I deserved that." He said, holding his hand over his face.

Shisui sighed. "Why did you do it? He was just calling us names because he's so weak. Even the other Hyuuga's at school call him weak. He's just a stupid bully. You shouldn't waste your energy on weak people." Itachi looked at Shisui like he had just said the wisest thing ever.

"You are right. From now on I will fight only those strong enough to make a good fight." Itachi was determined. He felt no satisfaction from beating up that boy. He hadn't even put up a good fight.

"Come on, let's go to my house and get some dinner."

"I'm not hungry." Itachi sighed and looked at the ground.

"You have to eat. A ninja eats and sleeps when he can because he doesn't know when his next meal will be." The two boys walked back to Konoha.

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Sitting in a tree, undetected, the man with the orange and black mask laughed. He had seen and heard everything. "Itachi, you are going to be very powerful. But Shisui is correct. No point wasting your energies on the weak. They are no test of your skill. And we are going to have to work on that temper. Can't have you attacking without my permission, now can we?"

Next to him, somewhere, a disembodied voice was heard "He is perfect. Raise him well, Madara, you are not the only one who has need of him."

"Of course." Madara responded. He jumped down from the tree and walked back into the forest.

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When the two boys reached the gate Kentaro was standing at the guard's station waiting for them.

"Good Afternoon, Itachi, Shisui. Would you like some company on your way home?" He was smiling broadly.

"Yes." Shisui answered. Itachi was sulking a little and just nodded his head.

"I heard about the fight, Itachi. Sound like you did a number on that older kid. I suppose he'll be pretty embarrassed when others find out he was beaten up by a five year old." He gave a short laugh.

"Nah… He was weak. It wasn't even worth the effort." Itachi was staring at the ground as we walked.

"That boy has great potential, Itachi. He may be weak now, but he has the capability to be a great ninja if he applies himself. It is possible that the next time you face him, you could be in for a huge surprise. Never assume that weakness is a person's destiny, or that destiny cannot be changed." Kentaro stopped walked and then knelt down in front of Itachi and put his hands on the boys shoulder. "What I am trying to say is that you should never underestimate an opponent."

"He's going to come after me again, isn't he?" Itachi smiled. "Then I will judge if he is worthy to fight me at that time. I hope he is."

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Fugaku was sitting behind his desk at the police station. He was reading reports from a recent retrieval mission. The team of three Uchiha had gone to bring back another deserter and was lured into a trap. The deserter was acting as a spy for the village hidden in the clouds. Unfortunately for him, his new "allies" didn't need him as much as he thought they did and disposed of him. This was bad news since the interrogation squad was hoping to get some of the names of the other spies from the deserter. It was also bad news because they wouldn't get paid since the man was killed. Oh well, win some, loose some.

"Excuse me, Fugaku, but Hiashi Hyuuga would like a few words with you." Toshiro stuck his head in his leader's office.

"Fine. Send him in. Where is my secretary?" Fugaku closed a couple folders.

"She's on her break for another ten minutes, and I'm borrowing her typewriter." He smiled and he scratched the back of his head. "I'll send him right in."

Hiashi walked into the office and sat down when Fugaku offered him a chair. "So what are you doing in this part of town?" Fugaku asked. His Sharingan was activated and he watched the man in front of him closely. Behind him he could see Yota's father standing in the secretary's area. Apparently he had been told to stand back.

"I'm just following up on an incident for a clan member. Yota was severely beaten by your boy and I am wondering what precipitated the event." Hiashi looked over at Fugaku with his Byakugan. The two had gone to the academy together. Two clan lords in the same class. They had similar upbringings, similar concerns, and similar anxieties over their futures. But because of their clan affiliation they could never be friends.

"Ah yes. I wondered if I would hear any more about that. So how is the boy?"

"He is well. He will be out of the hospital in a few days, I understand. He is of the side branch so I didn't bother looking in on the specifics." He saw Fugaku frown at that. He had never understood the way the man associated himself with lesser members of his clan.

"Hmm. The least you could have done, as his lord, was to visit him for a couple minutes. I see you never change, do you?" He reached down on his desk and picked up a photo and handed it to Hiashi. "That is my son."

Hiashi looked at the photo and his eyes widened in surprise. "How long ago was this photo taken?"

"Two weeks ago. He turned five. He will also be starting summer term at the Academy in a few months. He is a genius." He paused as Hiashi continued to stare at the photo. Itachi was standing behind a cake with five candles, and Mikoto was standing next to the table.

"So your wife is pregnant?" He asked.

"Yes. Our second child will arrive in July." Fugaku answered proudly.

"My first will arrive in August. I hope he or she is smarter than Yota. Well, it looks like my suspicions were true. I'm pretty sure Yota's bullying days are over. I would talk to his father about the boy's behavior, but I think it might be better to leave it to Yota and Itachi to work out on their own." Hiashi put the picture back in its original location.

"I definitely agree." Hiashi stood up. "It was great to see you again. Pass on our best wishes to your wife for a safe delivery."

"Thank-you. And best wishes to your wife as well." The two men bowed to each other and the two Hyuuga's left. Fugaku opened his window a little bit and heard Hiashi talking as they left the building.

"…so your son was beaten up by a boy four years younger than him? It sounds like you have not been training him efficiently. Picking on small children to the point of pissing them off is disgraceful."

"Yes sir. I'll talk to him, sir." The boy's father was looking at the ground as they walked by the window.

"You better do more than talk to him. You are supposed to be training him. I talked to the school, he has the worst grades in his class. No Hyuuga who has attended the academy has ever failed to become a ninja. Make sure Yota is not the first."

"Yes sir." The voice was a little less sure this time.

"Well, Itachi, it looks like you have your first rival. Congratulations." Fugaku smiled as he spoke out loud to an empty room.

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That night he called Kentaro into the temple for a conversation. They sat talking and sipping tea on the deck overlooking the mediation garden. The sun was setting and the sunbeams peaked through a few dark gray clouds. The sky was clearing up after a spring rain earlier and the air smelled fresh and clean.

"The Hyuuga came to my office today." Fugaku finally got to the point.

"What did he want?" Kentaro was smiling.

"He was playing the half-concerned clan lord and checking up on a matter for one of the side branch members."

"What was his reaction when he found out Itachi was five years old?"

"A little embarrassed, although he would never show it. He feels the same way I do about the matter – that we should let the kids work it out on their own."

"Good. Shisui told me about that kid. The sooner he straightens up the better. He will be a good rival for Itachi when he gets more skilled." Kentaro shook the tea pot. "It looks like we ran out."

"I need to get home anyway. Just one more thing has been bothering me." He activated his Sharingan and looked straight at Kentaro with a stern expression. The old man's ever-present smile faded quickly. "Itachi was using Taijutsu moves that I have not taught him. They are not taught in the academy at Shisui's level so I know he didn't teach him. TV is not to blame here either." Kentaro looked back at his clan leader and wondered what he was getting at. He decided to keep quiet and listen for now. Fugaku had stopped talking and was looked at the elder. "They go out for several hours on Saturday's, supposedly to train, and I suppose they must be doing some training since they are both very tired when they return home. I could come straight out and ask you from whom he learned his Taijutsu, but I know you would just sidestep the question."

The sun dipped below the horizon and sky glowed yellow, orange and purple. Kentaro kept his mouth shut. He sensed that saying anything right now would set Fugaku off. The sounds of the shops in the main compound street could be heard as people discussed fruits and vegetables and the high cost of meat.

"Kentaro. Itachi could become very hard to control when he gets older. There is no doubt about his abilities, and there is also no more doubt about his heritage. He has inherited his grandfathers mental problems. That was made painfully obvious to me when he attacked that boy. When I was three years old, right before my father was caught he said he would not kill me if I made one promise to him. Being a terrified child I said I would promise anything." Fugaku stopped talking for several minutes. "He made me promise never to father children. He said the experiment was a failure and his abilities would transfer to his grandchildren. I still don't know what he meant by 'experiment', but as I grew older and studied genetics in science classes at the academy I understood DNA and inheritance. The Uchiha are a cursed clan, and their hope for the future is a genius that could…"

"Fugaku!" Kentaro could no longer keep quiet. "Stop right there. I do not want to hear you saying such things. Itachi is his own person. He is not the reincarnation of his grandfather. I have said it a dozen times and I will say it again. Quit overreacting. You are sitting around waiting, no_ looking_, for ways to find that man in your son. I guarantee that if you only search for only one thing in your life, you will find it. But when you find it are you looking at a mirage or the real thing? You will not be able to tell the difference."

"Ah! Kentaro. If you turn Itachi against me. If this extra training he is receiving is to be used against the clan, the clan will kill him. Like they did his grandfather. My father. Did you forget that they made me watch the execution as a lesson in how not to act when I grew up? I do not want to watch my son die that way. Even though I used to wonder if it would be better if he was dead. I have grown attached to him over the last year and I am not ready to give him up. To anyone. Do you understand anything I am saying?"

"Loud and clear." Kentaro looked up at the sky. It was dark blue now and the lights in the temple came on. He thought for a minute then decided to say more. "He needs work on his temper, patience, and he needs to be kept in better control as he gets older. You need to learn to discipline the boy without severely injuring him or throwing him out of the house like you did when he attacked Yota."

"Yes, that I agree with. Well, I guess we had been be off. Mikoto will be keeping my dinner warm, but she won't keep it forever."

"Ha ha ha!" Kentaro's smile returned. "Saiyu pulls the same thing! See you later." Both men put their sandals back on and left.

Itachi peaked out from behind the altar. He hadn't meant to spy, but he had come in to pray to the gods for strength in his training and when he heard his name he masked his chakra and hid. He moved away from the altar and walked to the center of the temple and stood still for a few minutes. He had heard everything, and it kind of scared him. Grandfather was a scary person. A bad person. And father was afraid he would also be a bad person. And if he was…the clan would kill him like they did his grandfather. They were going to control him. Discipline him if he didn't live up to their standards. He felt like his whole world just shifted. Like a rug had been pulled out from under him and instead of landing on the floor he was still floating, unable to right himself.

"I don't want to be clan chief any more." Itachi said in a very soft voice.

"Itachi." Madara's deep voice suddenly sounded behind him. Itachi didn't turn around. He heard Madara sigh. "There is another way. Be patient. Study your lessons, train hard, gain the Sharingan and learn to use it. For you, a five year old, there are many years to go before you can begin the shake your shackles and throw them off. The adults are manipulating you, true, even I am, but we all have your best interest in mind as well as our own selfish ends. You are also using them to gain knowledge and experience. It is a delicate balance of give and take. It is not possible to give without sometimes taking, and vice versa."

"What are your selfish ends?" Itachi was still speaking very quietly.

"The survival of the clan. That is my first and foremost goal. You know who I am, so you must understand my interest in the Sharingan. You are a strong person, as is Shisui. You both figure prominently in the clan's future. You are what an Uchiha should be. Never forget that. Instead of hiding behind threats of punishment and death, show them your true power and we can revive this dying clan." He paused and looked at the boy. "Itachi, what are your selfish ends?"

The boy stood quietly for a couple minutes, then turned around and looked up at the tall man. "I want to show them that I am stronger than my grandfather. No matter what I grow up to be, they won't hurt me!" He spoke in his normal voice. But to himself he said 'Father said he likes me now. That must mean he will protect me.'

Madara reached over and put his hand on the boy's head. "You better get home now. I'll see you and Shisui on Saturday. Don't worry, no matter what, I will continue to train you."

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**Aww…how cute…Itachi has his first rival. Our little boy is growing up so fast sob**

**Anyway, review and Itachi will let you train with him. It'll be fun, really.**

**In the next chapter Itachi starts school and the new baby is born. You will be surprised at who some of his classmates are. Put this on your Story Alerts and you will get an e-mail when the next chapter posts.**


	8. Chapter 8 And Baby Makes

**In the previous chapter Fugaku spent four weeks locked up in solitary, then shocked the Hokage in a battle of words by revealing just how cold his heart is. The Hokage wants to help Fugaku, but he knows that Fugaku would never let him. Itachi gets riled up by the taunts of a Hyuuga and attacks him, nearly killing him. The Hyuuga clan lord stops by to talk to Fugaku about the attack but they both agree to leave the situation in the hands of the children, and let them work it out on their own. Fugaku then confronted Kentaro about the Taijutsu Itachi was using, and asks where he learned it from. He then reveals that he believes Itachi has inherited mental problems from his grandfather, and this will make him hard control. After they leave it is revealed that Itachi was an "accidental spy" to their conversation, and is very disgruntled. Madara appears and consoles the boy, telling him that when he is older he will be free. Finally, it appears that Madara has a cohort of some kind, but who is it?**

**Thank-you to the readers who have reviewed or added my story to your favorites or alerts. **

**Please review… This is an amazing chapter – tell me if you like it or not.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. Although, since he is apparently finished with Deidara, do you think he'll let me have him? Please?? I promise I'll feed him and this time I'll poke holes in the jar so he can breathe. **

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**Chapter 8 – And Baby Makes… **

Itachi was sitting on a stainless steel table in an examination room in the Konoha Hospital. He had just had a physical examination and the doctor had told him that another medic would be by in a few minutes with some vaccinations. His mother was standing by the window looking at some birds playing in a tree. It was late June and school would be starting in a few short weeks. Since a large portion of the curriculum involved physical activity the students had to be certified healthy once a year. The doctor had made him run on a treadmill to measure his heart, blow into a device meant to measure lung capacity, checked his blood pressure and blood sugar, among other things. He had also taken a blood sample and told his mother the results would be ready in a few days.

He was getting bored. "Where is Kagura?"

"She is working in the trauma ward. They had a couple teams attacked by Cloud ninja and the medics up there are trying to save them." She didn't sugar coat the situation. Itachi was going to be a ninja and he needed to know that these things were a part of the job.

"How many died?" He looked at his mother, who had turned away from the window to look at him.

"Only one so far. They expect one other to die, but they are still hopeful they can save her." She watched for a reaction as she spoke. There was none. Itachi's face was emotionless. She sighed and looked back outside. She was getting near term and was feeling restless. Her stomach was huge and she was standing because her back hurt if she sat, but then again, if she stood for long her feet would hurt. Kisa had offered to take Itachi for his exam but she wanted to be there for the important event. The Uchiha stable had provided a horse cart and driver so she wouldn't have to walk.

Itachi was lost back in his own thoughts. He wanted to go home and practice Kunai throwing. He started to swing his feet back and forth, but stopped when the door opened and a small boy about an inch taller than himself entered the room. He had white hair that had been gathered and tied at the nape of his neck and wore glasses. His blue shorts and white shirt were neatly pressed and his black sandals were brand new. He gave Itachi and his mother a big smile.

"My Father said the vaccination guy will be here in a few minutes. One of the other kids is throwing a tantrum about being stuck with a needle and they are busy dealing with it. He says he apologizes for the delay." He pushed his glasses up on his nose with a finger. "Your name is Itachi. Mine is Kabuto. We are going to be in the same class. Nice to meet you." He bowed to Itachi.

"Nice to meet you too, Kabuto. Was your dad the one who examined me?"

"Yes. He's one of the best medic ninja's here. Well, really he's my foster father. He adopted me. I've only been living here for a couple weeks. He figures I'm six years old so he enrolled me at the Academy." The boy was obviously very talkative.

"Oh!" Mikoto said, looking at the boy with surprise. "So you are the little boy they found at Kikyou pass? I heard you lost your memory. I guess if you don't know how old you are it must be true." She had a sad look on her face. She couldn't imagine Itachi left on his own with no village, clan, or family to look after him.

"Yeah, I can't remember anything. Father named me Kabuto. But I don't feel sad or anything. I can't remember anything to be sad about so I'm fine, so please don't feel sad for me." He gave Mikoto a big smile, and she gave him a smile of her own. He did have a point, she decided. Maybe it was best he didn't remember.

A man with disheveled hair and a bruise on his cheek rushed into the room. Kabuto waved to Itachi and Mikoto and left.

"Roll up your sleeve kid, and I'll give you your vaccinations for school." Itachi looked at the man like he had just sprouted a second head.

"I'm not wearing a shirt." The boy said, put out. His mother stifled a giggle. The medic looked up with shock.

"Oh, sorry. I'm a little frayed at the moment." He tugged on his white tunic to straighten it, then opened a glass case and stared at a piece of paper. Using his index finger he pointed to several items on the list then pulled three bottles out of the cabinet. He also pulled out three syringes and filled them with vaccine.

"Okay, little boy, I'd appreciate it if you don't attack me when I stick you with this pointy needle." Itachi was starting to get mad. Mikoto smiled as she guessed why this man was having such a bad day. He obviously had no bedside manner. He injected Itachi's left arm with the three needles. The boy didn't so much as twitch. He was looking the medic in the face, but the man refused to meet his gaze. "You're done. You can go."

"No." Itachi crossed his arms and sat very still.

"No? Why not?" The medic's voice had a twinge of panic in it. This was turning out to be a very bad day.

"I didn't get my lollipop." Mikoto turned and looked out the window again stifling her laughs. Itachi had such a sweet tooth that there was no way that medic was leaving without giving him his candy. The medic looked at the boy for second, went over to a jar, grabbed several lollipops and slammed them on the examination table.

"Here! Take your god-damned lollipops!" He walked out of the room mumbling about ungrateful kids, leaving his paperwork behind.

"He gave me six candies, Mother!" Itachi had a big smile.

"Well, then, put your shirt on and we'll go home." She smiled as they left the room.

Sitting on the counter, forgotten, was the vaccination record of fourteen year old Itaru Usui, with three new checkmarks for two types of hepatitis and a tetanus booster.

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Itachi was sound asleep. It was early July and, true to form, it was hot out. His window was open, but there was no breeze. Still, he had no trouble falling asleep. He wasn't really dreaming about anything. Just, unconscious, comfortable, not thinking about the heat.

"Itachi!" A voice seemed to be coming from somewhere.

"Itachi!" Maybe it was under the bed?

"Itachi! Wake up!" He sat straight up when he realized it was his mother.

"Itachi!" Something was wrong. He got up and ran to her room.

"Mother! What's wrong?" He ran to the bed. "Where's father?"

"He had to work tonight. Arghhh!" His mother's face contorted in pain and his eyes went wide. "Run to the hospital and tell Kagura that the baby is coming, then run to the station and get your father. Quick!" She moaned again and grabbed her stomach. Itachi ran to his room and quickly put on the shorts and shirt he had thrown on the floor when he went to bed, then ran to the entryway and quickly slipped on his sandals. He was at the hospital in ten minutes.

"Quick! Where is Kagura!" He yelled to the woman at the front desk.

"I don't know right off, why do you need her?" The woman was a little surprised by the sudden arrival of a small boy. A security guard, who had been standing in the patient seating area watching TV walked over and knelt down in front of him.

"My mother said the baby is coming, but she is in pain and keeps moaning. Hurry and tell Kagura to come!"

"Okay, I'll have her paged."

"What's your name?" The man asked him.

"Itachi Uchiha."

"Is your mom at home? Is she alone?"

"Yes. Father is at the station I have to get him after I get Kagura." The man nodded his head.

"Sounds like its okay then. Just wanted to make sure." He was concerned that they might be alone, as many ninja's wives were when they were due. He stood up as Kagura came running into the waiting area.

"Itachi. You said your mother is in pain?" She spoke in a hurry as she checked the contents of a bag she was carrying.

"Yes. She was moaning." Itachi was getting antsy.

"How often was she moaning. Like every few seconds or every few minutes?"

"Seconds."

"Shit!" Kagura panicked. The baby shouldn't be coming this quick. Had she ignored signs earlier or was the baby coming faster than usual? "Okay, we need to run."

"I have to get father first." Itachi looked up at her. He noticed her worried expression.

"I'll meet you back at your house then." They both took off running.

A few minutes later Itachi ran into the police station. "Where is my father?" He recognized the man behind the counter as a clan member. The man was half-asleep and resting his chin on his hands.

"It's 1:30 in the AM. Go back to bed Itachi." He drawled lazily.

"I can't! Mother is having a baby!" Suddenly he was wide awake.

"What! Why didn't you say so? Wait here!" He ran through a door marked "Employees Only" and disappeared.

"Adults can be so weird sometimes." He spoke into the empty room.

"Itachi! Where is Kagura?" Fugaku rushed into the reception room two minutes later and made his way out the front door with Itachi running to keep up with him.

"She is already on her way. Mother told me to go to the Hospital first."

"Good." He picked up his son and took off at a sprint. Itachi was shocked at how fast his father could run. Fugaku was worried. He had left for the station at 11:00pm. She hadn't been having any labor pains then. Well, that should mean there were still a few hours before the baby came. At least it had been that way with Itachi.

They arrived at the house a few minutes later. Kagura heard them enter and poked her head out of the bedroom then went back in.

"Itachi, go to the living room and wait." His voice left no room for discussion. Itachi walked to the living room and sat on one of the sofas. He kept clenching and un-clenching his fists against the fabric of the couch. His father came back out several minutes later.

"It's okay Itachi. It looks like the baby is coming soon. Can't wait to get into the world, I guess. It took you half a day to decide to come out." He smiled at his son. Itachi let out a big sigh. If his father could smile, then things must not be too bad. Maybe she wasn't in pain anymore. Kagura was a great medic after all.

Itachi had finally fallen asleep on the couch when Kagura shook him awake. "Itachi, I need you take a message to Kisa. Wake her up and give this envelope to her. Quick." Itachi stood up, grabbed the envelope and took off without saying anything. She looked at Fugaku.

"What's wrong?" He spoke before she did.

"Get the horse and wagon, right away, we need to get her to the hospital. She's lost consciousness twice and her chakra system appears to be trying to shut down." She barely finished the sentence before he was out the door. She quickly returned to Mikoto's bedroom. She had stabilized Mikoto when she first arrived and things were going well. The labor pains were random instead of evenly spaced, but she was able to use her chakra to regulate them. Then about two hours later she suddenly lost consciousness. At first Kagura thought she had fallen asleep, but a second later she realized what was going on and revived her. The second time she lost consciousness she felt Mikoto's chakra weaken. She revived her, but it took ten minutes, and her chakra was even weaker. That was when she sent Itachi and Fugaku on their errands.

Fugaku arrived with one of the stable hands and the two of them gently placed Mikoto on a stretcher and put her in the back of the horse cart. The man then drove them to the hospital as fast as he could.

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Itachi ran to Kisa's house and banged on the door until Kisa answered it.

"Here! Kagura said for me to give this to you!" Itachi shoved the envelope at the sleepy woman. She looked at the clock. It was four am. She placed a hand on Itachi's head and pulled him into the entry so she could shut the door. Opening the letter she read it, then moved behind Itachi and, activating chakra in her hand she gently touched the boys head. She caught him as he collapsed, fast asleep. After laying him in the guest bedroom she went to her son's bedroom and woke him up.

"Shisui, wake up Kentaro and tell him he is needed at the hospital. Then return here." She picked up his shorts and a shirt from the floor and then shoved him out the front door. Shisui ran to the elder's house and knocked on the door.

"What is it, Shisui?" Kentaro stuck his head out of a second floor window.

"You are needed at the Hospital!" He yelled at the old man.

"Okay! I'll leave right now." His head disappeared back into the house and Shisui ran back home.

"Mother, what is going on?" Shisui asked as he re-entered the house. His mother was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of tea.

"Mikoto has been rushed to the hospital so Itachi is going to stay with us for a while." She was looking at the table.

"Did Fugaku hit her again?" Shisui looked straight at his mother. She jerked her head up and met his gaze.

'Of course he knows about that.' She said to herself. 'He and Itachi are friends after all.' She noticed that Shisui was getting mad and his fists were clenched.

"No. The baby is coming." Shisui relaxed when he heard her answer. "And Shisui, do not _ever_ say anything bad about Fugaku. He is your lord and has the power of life and death over you. Never forget that. Now go to bed. And don't wake Itachi, he is in the guest bedroom."

Shisui walked back down the hall to his room. He relaxed a little when he heard Mikoto was having a baby, but his mother's comment about Fugaku tensed him up again. He had felt Fugaku's chakra when he broke up the fight between Itachi and Yota and the thought of that being used against him was frightening. It was a long time before he could fall back to sleep.

Back in the kitchen Kisa sighed and looked at her cold cup of tea. She hated having to say such a thing to her son, but if it saved him from a beating, or worse it was worth it, at least she hoped so.

Her thoughts went back to Mikoto. She was ten years older than Mikoto and had gone through miscarriages as well as having a two-day-old daughter die. Shisui was their last attempt, and he had been in the hospital for almost a month before the doctor let him leave. There was something wrong with the current generation of Uchiha. Her parent's generation had no problems having children, but currently there were very few children. It looked like Itachi and Shisui would have to look outside the clan for wives when they grew up. Perhaps that would be a good thing. 'Actually it would.' She decided to herself.

Toshiro entered the kitchen a little after seven. He had been at the station all night. Everyone had seen Fugaku rush out when news of his wife's impending delivering was announced, but no updates were forthcoming.

"Have you heard anything?" He said in a worried voice. His wife suddenly noticed he was there and rushed to him, wrapping her arms around his chest. He put his arms around her and asked again.

"No. Nothing. Toshiro! I hope they'll both be okay." She started crying. Toshiro heard something and saw Itachi and Shisui standing a few feet away in front of living room door. They looked at him with blank expressions and when he extended his hand to them, they both turned around and walked back into the living room. He briefly wondered what that was about before turned his attention back to Kisa.

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Fugaku and Kentaro sat in the hospital waiting room for hours. About 45 minutes after they arrived several medics had rushed into the hospital and down the hall without stopping at the desk. They both wondered if it had to do with Mikoto, or if some ninja had been wounded on a mission. But no other patients were admitted. Finally an older man in his late fifties came out.

"Fugaku?" He said as he approached the only two people in the waiting room at six am.

"Yes. Any news?" Fugaku stood up, then sat down again as the medic sat down in a chair opposite him.

"Yes, Mikoto and baby are okay so far, but I think what we are seeing is a very rare condition that hasn't even been named. Basically, your wife is an earth and fire element type, according to Kagura, and more than likely the baby is a fire and lightning type. Lightning is more powerful than Earth and the two chakra systems are fighting each other. It is an unconscious fight as neither Mikoto nor the baby are aware of it nor can do anything to stop it. I, as well as several researchers at the university in the Fire Country capital have been trying to isolate it and do more research, but it's not easy to find cases."

"So what can you do for them?" Fugaku had activated his Sharingan and was looking the doctor directly in the eye.

"We have called in several very skilled medics and they are in the sealing chamber drawing a chakra containment seal. We are going to move Mikoto as soon as it is done and try to contain the two chakra systems, dropping them to very low levels, then perform a cesarean. The truth is, Mikoto is not in labor. The pain was from the war going on between the two chakra systems. In past cases, when we tried to do a cesarean the chakra systems would spike, sensing danger and we always loose both of the patients. That is why I want to drop Mikoto and the baby's chakra to a low level while they are both physically strong. Maybe the chakra will be too weak to retaliate."

"But a person can't live without chakra, how will you deal with the low chakra levels?" Fugaku asked.

"We are also preparing two teams in separate chakra enhancement therapy rooms. A sealing circle is used by several medics to supplement the missing chakra. This gives the patient's chakra system a chance to rebuild itself without having to also support the body. We are very lucky here in one respect, in that the baby is supposed to show up this week anyway, so it is not premature. Also, Mikoto is very healthy." He looked at the man in front of him. He was very focused and trying hard not to look concerned.

"I suspect the baby is going to be a very, very powerful fire and lightning element user. However, I must also tell you that the reason it has been so hard to research this condition is that no one has ever survived it before. Also, it never shows any symptoms until the last minute. That is why I decided to try the chakra seal this time. It's a technique usually used to subdue troublesome prisoners, but if blocking the chakra long enough to separate the two chakra systems works, it will be huge breakthrough." The medic paused, waiting for a reaction.

"Thank-you for telling us all this. Has Kagura mentioned the lack of children in our clan?" Fugaku stated.

"Yes. She heard about my attempted research a few weeks ago and voiced her concerns to me. Unfortunately there is no way to know what a baby's chakra type is. It usually isn't measurable until he or she is between five and twelve years old. I'm just guessing with the lightning, but since your wife is an Earth type I am fairly certain my guess is correct."

"We really need this child, doctor." Kentaro looked at the ground as he spoke the words.

"I understand." The doctor got up and left. He could possibly complain about the hidden meaning in Kentaro's comment, but he loved children more than anything and agreed with him. A world with no children equaled nothing short of extinction. He wished more people would realize that. The Uchiha clan was fascinating to him. It looked to him, after seeing Mikoto and reading through several of the other member's medical records that evening, that he had finally found a source to study for this un-named condition. He prayed to God that the chakra seal worked.

Kentaro sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. Madara would be mad beyond reckoning if the baby died. It would ruin their plans. The child had to be an Uchiha. Itachi was their second choice, and Shisui their third, but they were too old and might die if they were used. There were a scattering of other children in the clan living in the Fire country capital, but they were teenagers and could not be used at all. He looked at Fugaku. The man was trying to be stoic. He was sitting, looking straight ahead with no emotion on his face. As expected of the clan leader. He was not allowed to be just a man. Ever. Kentaro stood up, mumbled something about getting them both some tea and walked outside.

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The seal was drawn on the floor of a large room and Mikoto was laying on the ground in the middle. She was awake, but the pain was getting worse and both her and the baby were weakening, both physically and chakra-wise. There were several medics placed strategically around the seal, and standing to the side of the room was an anesthesiologist, two pediatricians, two stretchers (one with an incubator), four nurses, Kagura, and the doctor who had spoken to Fugaku and Kentaro earlier. One of the medics standing around the seal made a signal and suddenly the pattern on the floor started to glow.

Mikoto felt something warm move through her body and she felt the baby kick. "That's right, baby, keep fighting. You have a big brother that wants to get to know you." She spoke softly. She felt her chakra relaxing. It was a strange feeling. Maybe relaxing was the wrong word to use then? The pain began to lessen anyway. She took a deep breath for the first time in hours. The doctor told her about his theory concerning the two chakra systems fighting. She had told him that Fugaku and their parents had all been fire and lightning element so perhaps her child was too. She didn't know what element Itachi was yet.

An hour later the man who seemed to be in charge of the sealing procedure looked around at the other medics. They nodded to him. "Doctor, we are ready. The chakra of both the mother and child are now very low. We would rather break off now than drop any lower. If you are going to do the cesarean you need to start now." The people standing on the sidelines rushed into the circle. Within minutes anesthesia was administered, an oxygen mask was around Mikoto's mouth and nose and sterile sheets were being wrapped around her abdomen. The incubator was still outside the circle. The baby was carefully removed and laid on a clean sheet.

"It's a boy." The doctor said quietly.

"His chakra is dropping!" The man holding the seal yelled a warning. The baby's chakra was already very low, it couldn't afford to drop anymore. The baby was quickly wrapped up and placed in the incubator.

"Get him to chakra enhancement therapy, now!" The doctor yelled. The second pediatrician ran ahead to get the room ready as two of the nurses rolled the incubator down the hall. Mikoto got a quick glance at the baby before they rushed him out. He was not moving. He didn't even cry when he had started breathing. The men holding the seal dropped their jutsu and the glow faded. Mikoto felt beyond weak.

"We need to get her into chakra therapy too." The doctor announced as he quickly used chakra and sutures to close Mikoto's abdomen. She was lifted onto the second stretcher and rushed to a different therapy room. The hospital had ten chakra therapy rooms.

As the baby was rushed into the Chakra therapy room five medics who were sitting on chairs quietly talking quickly stood up and took their places outside a different seal. The baby was removed from the incubator and placed on a pillow in the middle of the seal. A different incubator, this one with no bottom was placed over the top of him. It was meant to regulate his temperature since after a quick checkup the doctor decided he was fully formed and wouldn't need any medications or breathing assistance. The seal was activated and within thirty minutes they were supplementing the boy's chakra system. It sometimes took hours for the patient to recover enough for their own chakra to work properly. Every two hours the medic's would be replaced so they wouldn't get too tired. In another room Mikoto was being prepared the same way, except they covered her up with a warm comforter.

The doctor walked back out into the waiting room, followed by Kagura. He greeted Fugaku and Kentaro. "Well, Fugako, you have another son. Congratulations." He smiled at the man.

"How are they doing?" He asked, still feeling very anxious. Itachi's birth hadn't been this hard. But then, he spent the night in a bar instead of the waiting room. He suddenly felt very guilty.

"They have both been moved to chakra enhancement therapy rooms. The boy's chakra system dropped dangerously low, and Mikoto's chakra also dropped, though not as badly. She should be out of therapy by afternoon, I expect. I'm not sure yet about the baby. He is still in critical condition. You can go see him in a couple hours."

"What is your name?" Fugaku asked, suddenly realizing he didn't know.

"Huh? Oh! I'm sorry!" The man bowed in embarrassment. "I am Doctor Tomioka."

"That's okay, I think we all had our minds on other things." Kentaro spoke as he smiled at the man's oversight. Fugaku smiled also.

"Mikoto wanted to name the child Sasuke if it was a boy." Fugaku said. He felt he had no say in the child's name, as it wasn't really his. But after worrying about him for last few hours, not mention the last few months, he felt it was his child, in heart if not blood. Sasuke was a good name. Many Samurai in the stories and movies had that name. It spoke of honor, pride, loyalty and clan connections. Either that or his wife spent too much time watching TV and liked the name. He looked at Kagura. She was looking at the floor and hadn't said a word. He noticed that Kentaro was looking at her with a clouded expression on his face.

"Kagura, perhaps you should go see Itachi and tell him what is going on. Tell him the truth. He is a smart boy and will know if you are sugar-coating anything." Kagura tried to smile, but nodded instead. "Then go home and get some sleep."

"We have everything under control Kagura." The doctor added. "I'll leave orders to contact you if anything happens." She bowed to them all and left. When she got outside the street was full of people and the sun was shining. Looking at her watch she saw it was ten in the morning.

"What a long night." She sighed, then took off running.

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"Kagura!" Toshiro saw the woman before she knocked on the door and flung it open, dragging her inside. "What's going on? Is everyone okay?" Kisa, Shisui and Itachi quickly joined them in the entryway.

"Let her sit down. Let's go into the kitchen." Kisa placed a hand on Kagura's shoulder and led her into the kitchen, then poured her a cup of tea. It was luke-warm, but Kagura drank it down in one gulp.

"Mikoto is going to be fine. The baby is in critical condition." Kisa placed a water glass in front of Kagura. Kagura drank the whole glass in two gulps. "The baby's chakra system is not working the way it should so he is in therapy right now. His chakra is being supplemented, boosted, so that it won't have to do any work. This allows it to heal and build itself up on its own. As you know, if a person runs out of chakra, he or she will die." She paused. "It's a boy. Mikoto named him Sasuke."

Itachi heard the news. But he couldn't lift his gaze from the floor. Was he supposed to be happy because his mother was okay, or sad because his brother might die? He didn't know. He suddenly felt like someone was watching him and he looked up. Kagura was looking at him with an odd expression. He met her eye for a second then looked back down at the floor. He felt her finger touch his face lightly, but something was wrong.

"Itachi, its okay to cry if you want." Kagura said softly. He looked up at her then touched his own face. There were tears on his face. But how did they get there? Kagura realized that he didn't know he was crying. This alarmed her a little, but then Itachi had always been an odd child. He wiped his arm across his face.

"Anybody home?" Saiyu's voice came from the hallway, and she stuck her head in the kitchen.

"Yes! Saiyu, Kagura is here with news." Toshiro noticed she was carrying a cooking pot and he took it from her and placed it on the stove as Kagura repeated what she had just told them.

"I'm glad Mikoto is okay, and it sounds like there is a good chance Sasuke will be okay as well. I figured that since Kentaro hadn't come back from the hospital yet I would make you all some lunch and bring it over." Kisa moved to the stove and dished everyone up some fish stew. They ate in silence. They had skipped breakfast (no one had actually even thought to eat) and were starving. Kagura went home after eating. Saiyu made everyone else go to bed as well. She sat in the kitchen and opened a book to read for a while. She figured Fugaku would probably come here first and she wanted to see him, to reassure him. Also, she knew how dedicated Itachi was with his training and she wanted to make sure he stayed in bed and got some sleep.

Everyone was still asleep when Fugaku showed up mid-afternoon. Saiyu greeted him and showed him to the guest room where he looked in at Itachi for a couple minutes, then returned to the kitchen. In low voices, so they wouldn't wake anyone up Fugaku filled Saiyu in.

"Mikoto's chakra is normal again so they moved her into a regular hospital room. Private, of course. She can have visitors tomorrow. Perhaps you or Kisa could take Itachi?" Saiyu indicated it would be no problem. "Sasuke's condition is unchanged. The doctor is concerned because there should have been at least a small improvement by now. However, he went on to say that in a small amount of cases it can take twenty-four hours of therapy before the chakra system starts to respond so he is still hopeful. I went and saw him." He pulled out some photographs. "The hospital photographer took these. They are pretty good, considering he had to shoot through an incubator. You can show these to Itachi later when he wakes up. I have to go back to work tonight, so I need to get some sleep." Saiyu looked at the pictures. The boy had a lot of black hair for a baby and his fists were clenched. He definitely looked light a fighter.

"Can't you take the night off?" Saiyu asked, concerned.

"No. Genin and some Chuunin have gone missing. The Third and Fourth are convinced they are not deserters, and after reviewing the facts we agree. We think they are being kidnapped. We have to find these kids so we are helping the village ninja with the investigation." Fugaku stood up.

"Is it Orochimaru again?" Saiyu referred to a man who was one of the most powerful ninja's to come out of their village. He had been caught a few years ago experimenting on humans to find a way to pass the First Hokage's wood element DNA into a host. Not many people knew about it, and only one of his subjects survived. He was now a teenager. Orochimaru himself had escaped, but was still seen occasionally around the village for some reason.

"I think so. But the Third is defending his student again, saying he must be miles away and would never re-enter the village. We know he has come back several times, and this evidence points to him being here now. You know, being a policeman is so pointless when there is no justice." Saiyu showed him to the door and watched him walk down the street. He was over-tired, and exaggerated the "no justice" comment, she was sure of it, but she understood. That man, Orochimaru, was a menace. She made a mental note to discuss the issue with her husband. She wanted to make sure Itachi and Shisui stayed out of that sadists hands.

Saiyu woke everyone up an hour later and took them out to dinner. No one felt like cooking and they definitely didn't feel like doing the dishes afterward. Kentaro met up with them at the restaurant. They looked at the pictures of Sasuke and rejoiced that Mikoto was out of danger. After dinner they walked to the Uchiha temple and said prayers for Sasuke and Mikoto. Itachi closed his eyes and smelled the incense burning. It smelled so good, relaxing.

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The next day everyone went to the hospital to see Mikoto, and hopefully get some good news about Sasuke. They were directed to the third floor.

"Itachi, when you see your mother, she is going to be sore from the cesarean and very tired from the pain killers so don't jump on her or the bed, okay? You can hold her hand, though." Kagura was looking down at the boy as they rode the elevator. She had explained to him what a cesarean was, but she knew his understanding of the process was still superficial. He didn't need to know exact details anyway. They walked into Mikoto's room and Itachi stood looking at her in shock. She was connected to several machines and IV's were running into her left arm.

"Aren't you okay anymore?" He asked. He walked up to her and took her hand. It took her a minute to realize he didn't understand what the monitors were.

"I'm fine Itachi. These machines here are to make sure I stay fine and to alert the doctors if something happens. Everything is okay. I got an update on Sasuke, too. They said his chakra system has kicked in and is starting to heal. The doctor thinks they will be able to stop therapy in another twelve hours or so." Mikoto was feeling drowsy, but was very glad to see her son and friends. While she had been talking Saiyu arranged some flowers in a vase and Kisa unpacked a suitcase of Mikoto's things and put them in the drawer under the bed.

"I brought you some extra clothes, and some books and puzzles." The latter items she placed on the nightstand next to the bed, along with some pencils for the puzzles.

"Thank-you Kisa. When I finally wake up fully I'm going to be very, very bored. I have to stay here for a couple weeks, then when I go home I can't do anything for another five weeks. I'm going to go crazy, I know it." She smiled.

"Well, we will be there to help." Kisa thought about that for a second. "I mean help you not be bored, not help you go crazy…" Mikoto laughed a little.

"Thanks very much. Also, Itachi, thank-you for following mine and everyone else's orders. You saved your brothers life. When you save a persons life, you become responsible for them. He is more than just your brother now. He is your very existence. Please watch over him." She was getting very tired again.

"Yes mother. I will look after him." Itachi was a little shocked by his mother's words. He was only five years old, and as grown up as he wanted to think he was, it sounded like his mother just put a huge burden on his back. Or was it something else?

"We should go now and let Mikoto sleep. We can go up and see Sasuke now, actually." Everyone said their farewells and Mikoto fell asleep almost before they reached the door. They made their way to the Chakra therapy room. There was a window in the door, and Itachi and Shisui had to be lifted up in order to see through it.

"One of the medics is feeding him a bottle." Itachi said as Kagura held him up. He watched his brother closely. The medic had her hands inside the incubator holding his back up slightly as she used the other hand to hold the bottle.

"The medics said he is a very hungry baby. Mikoto's going to have to stock up a lot of baby formula." Kagura put Itachi down and lifted Shisui.

"He's so tiny!" The boy was a little shocked.

"He looks smaller because the room is big, but babies are small anyway." Kisa answered her son and Kagura put him down. After they all had a turn looking in at the baby they went back to Kisa's house, except for Kagura who stayed at the hospital for her shift and Saiyu who decided to stay in town and do some shopping.

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Summer break was in force at the Academy so Shisui didn't have to go to school while Itachi was staying at his house. They spent a lot of time practicing Taijutsu, Kunai and star throwing, and swimming in the lake. The temperatures that July were very hot and it seemed that almost every Uchiha in the village had turned into either a mermaid or merman and was now living in the lake.

Fugaku and Toshiro were working long hours at the police station. They said they were investigating missing persons. Kisa said they were hiding in an air conditioned building. Toshiro came home early that day with a brand new window air conditioner and installed it in the living room. Everyone agreed it was the best purchase of the summer. They ended up moving futons into the living room when temperatures reached 100 degrees two days in a row. It wasn't perfect, but at least they got some sleep.

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Mikoto and the new baby came home after spending two weeks in the hospital. A horse cart transported them into the Uchiha compound early in the morning to avoid the heat. The entire clan lined the streets to see the new baby. Mikoto asked the driver to stop so the clan could crowd around and greet the new arrival. After forty-five minutes of gossiping and showing off the baby the driver mentioned that it was starting to get warm out and they continued the drive home.

Kisa and the two boys were on the porch waiting for her. Kisa had spent the previous day cleaning the house and shopping for supplies. There was plenty of baby formula in the cupboards, milk in the refrigerator, as well as other things like rice, meat, cereal, fruits and vegetables. One of the clan members would be acting as a housekeeper for a month or so until the doctor said Mikoto was back to normal. The temporary housekeeper was a woman in her fifties named Yuiko who often did housekeeping jobs for various people around the village. She was a very social person who loved to help people.

"There she is!" Shisui pointed and yelled as the horse cart made its way to the porch. Itachi and Kisa stood up and walked down to meet it. Shisui stood at the top of the steps. The cart pulled around so that the side was next to the stairs and the driver locked the wheels and got out. He climbed inside the carriage and handed the baby down to Kisa.

"Here you go Kisa! A really quiet baby, on the ride home, but he was really wailing before we left. You guys might want to get some ear muffs." He laughed, and Mikoto rolled her eyes at him and smiled. He helped Mikoto out of the carriage and up the stairs.

"Thank-you for the ride, Asato." Mikoto bowed slightly.

"No problem Lady Mikoto. Take care, and heal up fast!" He climbed back into his wagon and drove back to the Uchiha stables.

"Kisa! Thank-you for everything you have done. We keep imposing on you and you accept the imposition with such good grace. I don't want you to feel we are taking advantage of you." Mikoto bowed a few inches to her friend.

"Mikoto, it was never an imposition. You are like a little sister to me and I would do anything to help you." Kisa bowed back to her friend, hugging Sasuke close to her.

"Can we go inside now?" Itachi asked. He and Shisui were starting to feel uncomfortable with their mother's emotional behavior. Sasuke made some noises and tried to grab Kisa's hair. "See? Sasuke wants to go inside too." The two women laughed at him and walked into the house.

Mikoto slowly walked down to the living room and lowered herself slowly onto the couch. She was still sore and it hurt to bend over. Kisa and the two boys followed. Kisa placed Sasuke in a bassinette and rolled it closer to where Mikoto was sitting. Itachi and Shisui stood next to it staring at the baby. Itachi raised his hand then stopped six inches from the baby. He looked up at his mother with a puzzled look on his face.

"It's okay, Itachi, you can touch him. You have to be gentle for a couple years, though." Mikoto smiled at her son's sudden shyness. He lowered his hand and stroked the baby's cheek, then touched his hair.

"So soft." Itachi said in a low voice.

"May I touch him too?" Shisui asked quietly.

"Yes." Mikoto and Kisa both had big smiles on their faces.

"Wow. He is soft." Shisui was stroking the baby's hair.

"Hey! He has a really strong grip!" Itachi had touched Sasuke's hand and Sasuke grabbed his finger and held on. Shisui did the same thing.

"Yeah! Maybe he'll be a sword user when he grows up." Shisui pulled his finger up and the baby lifted up of the bassinette. "How do you undo his hands?" Mikoto reached in and gently coerced Sasuke into releasing the boys' fingers by rubbing the back of his hands.

"So." Shisui and Itachi looked at each other.

"Yeah." Itachi answered.

"Ummm…" Shisui added. "How did the baby get inside Mikoto, and then get out again?"

"We were trying to figure it out, and we asked Kentaro, but he laughed at us and said to ask our mothers." Itachi's eyes were wide. He always got a little excited when the prospect of learning something new came up.

Mikoto and Kisa laughed. Kentaro had told Kisa about the conversation and she told Mikoto. Mikoto was feeling bored and was starting to get cabin fever after ten days in the hospital and suggested they concoct a story about her being abducted by aliens. After several minutes of joking around, they decided to tell them the truth.

An hour later the new housekeeper walked into the kitchen to make lunch. Sitting at the kitchen table were two boys, with two cups of tea (untouched), looking straight ahead and not saying anything.

"Well, what's wrong with you two?" Yuiko waved her hand in front of their faces.

"Our mothers… had sex with our fathers." Shisui answered.

"Yes. I hope so." Yuiko answered absent mindedly as she opened to refrigerator to see what was in it. The two boys were a little shocked by her answer, but it broke them out of their daze.

"Let's go outside. Adults are all crazy." Itachi eyed Yuiko suspiciously and stood up.

"Don't go too far, sweety, lunch will be ready soon." Yuiko started laughing when they left the room. She had a feeling she knew what that morning's discussion had consisted of.

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The house was dark. Mikoto and Itachi had gone to bed around 8:30 and Fugaku had not come home from the station yet. The housekeeper had left after preparing dinner. Madara appeared in the baby's bedroom, about two feet from the crib. The boy was awake and looking around, occasionally waving his arms in the air. He walked to the crib, then bent down and picked the baby up. Under his mask, he smiled.

"My son." He said softly. "I am sorry for the way your future is going to be, but you must understand that the Uchiha clan must survive. You will enable that survival. You will curse me when you are old enough to understand. And you will curse your brother for following me." He felt conflicting emotions inside of him. He wanted to protect the child, yet he also had to use the child or the Sharingan's true power would never be achieved. He quickly put the baby back in the crib and pulled the small blanket up around him. Turning his back he disappeared.

In the forest, outside of Konoha he reappeared. Sinking to his knees he ripped off his mask and grabbed his head with both hands. A low moan escaped his mouth and he started breathing heavily.

"No!" He said sternly. "I am in control. Go back to sleep!" He yelled the last sentence into the empty night.

"Having problems?" A man appeared behind Madara. "You went to see the baby, didn't you? Didn't I warn you about that? You're host is very strong, if you loose control you will regret it."

Madara quickly stood up and turned around. The man who had just spoken was actually a hologram that had rainbow like colors flowing through a white background. The only thing visible was the outline of a body, and the eyes with their many concentric rings.

"What I do is none of your business." Madara bent down and picked up his mask.

"What you do _is_ my business. We do have a partnership… of sorts…" The hologram disappeared.

"Dammit!" Madara yelled into the night. It rained for the next two days.

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**Well, I know I said that Itachi would be starting school in this chapter, but it didn't fit – both in terms of length and theme.**

**Next week – Itachi starts school and runs into a couple of "friends".**

**Please review… I like reviews. This story is getting tons of hits though, that is really cool.**

**Happy New Year! **


	9. Chapter 9 School Begins

**In the previous chapter Itachi had a run-in with an absent-minded medic, met a classmate named Kabuto, and Sasuke was brought into the world with much drama and fanfare.**

**Please review ! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 9 – School Begins**

Itachi was sitting in a metal chair and swinging his legs back and forth. There were fourteen other children, all one to three years older than him in three rows of five chairs each. Everyone was fidgeting nervously. It was the opening ceremony for first year Academy students. Standing to the left and right of the new students were various parents, guardians, and relatives who came to watch. Itachi's parents and his little brother had come, as well as all eight of the elders. The Uchiha heir starting school was a big event in the clan.

"Is that your new little brother?" Kabuto leaned over and whispered to Itachi.

"Yeah." Itachi said. He had been watching his parents since he sat down.

"Are you nervous? I am."

"No! I'm not nervous." Itachi started swinging his legs faster and looked at the ground.

"Oh." Kabuto smiled a little. "Being a ninja is going to be hard. I hope I don't disgrace my foster father by failing. He's been trying to teach me how to use a kunai, but I keep dropping it."

"Maybe you're holding it wrong? My Kunai are smaller than regular ones. Maybe he could get you some smaller ones?"

"I'll ask. Good idea." Kabuto noticed that Itachi had stopped swinging his feet.

"It looks like Itachi has found someone to talk to already." Fugaku spoke quietly to his wife.

"Yes. That is Kabuto Yakushi. He's the little boy that was brought back from Kikyou pass. We met him when Itachi went for his physical."

"Hmm. We investigated him when he arrived, since he was a civilian. Sad. He has no memories of what happened before the battle, or why he was even there. There is no village for miles and he wasn't dressed as a ninja. We figure he must have been kidnapped. The area is so remote that it would be practically impossible to find out where he is from."

"He seems happy now. I can't image what it must be like to grow up without belonging to a family and a clan." Mikoto put her hand on Sasuke's back. He was sleeping comfortably in the carrier she had strapped to her chest. He only weighed twelve pounds so she didn't think it would be any problem to carry him.

The Academy headmaster stepped up onto a podium and signaled for everyone to be quiet.

"I am the headmaster Motoya Sato. Welcome to the Konoha Ninja Academy. We all have the highest hopes that you will study and train your hardest. The Academy exists to train you, the future of our village." He droned on for about fifteen more minutes. He was a middle-aged thin man of medium height with shoulder length purple hair. He wore a black tunic with black pants. His clear, sharp voice carried across the schoolyard. Itachi was listening very carefully, but the man kept saying the same thing over and over. He just changed the words around. The kids around him started to fidget. He glanced over at his parents through the corner of his eye. His mother had moved and was sitting next to a pregnant woman near the Fourth Hokage. It looked like the two women were talking. He finally recognized her as the Fourth's wife. Itachi's attention returned to the headmaster.

"Without further delay, I would like to introduce the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze." He stepped down from the podium as everyone clapped. The Fourth shook hands with the headmaster then stepped up onto the podium.

"I am the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. I am pleased to meet all of you. Your dedication to learn the ninja arts at such a young age is inspirational." His clear blue eyes looked over the students, stopping to look into each of their eyes as he talked. The kids were paying attention again. "Your studies will not be easy, and at times frustrating, but when you feel like you can't figure something out, that something is too hard to learn, just look at your parents, and their friends, and your older brothers and sisters and cousins and neighbors. They also felt the same frustration, once, and worked through it to learn and graduate and become Konoha ninja. Konoha is a village of people who work together, and care for each other." His eyes had stopped roving over the children and were locked onto Itachi's. The boy stared back, and on the sidelines, Fugaku noticed Minato's gaze. "When you feel you are alone with your burdens, that there is no one you can go to for help because pride, or circumstance prevent it, please realize that you are not alone. There are others, always, who want to help you. Who will help you, no matter what."

Fugaku creased his eyebrows as he watched Minato holding Itachi's gaze. He was not talking to the children. The Fourth was giving him a message. 'Minato, you are really too smart for your own good. Your insight will get you killed faster than if you had just kept your nose clean.' His thoughts were his own, and he hoped the elders around him didn't suspect anything. Well, Kentaro probably caught on. The man was a genius in his own right.

Itachi was confused. Why was the Fourth looking at him, and saying such things? To go to others and admit you were having trouble was to admit that you were weak. His father had practically beaten that into him. Why was the Fourth telling them all it was okay to be weak? 'I will never do that.' Itachi thought to himself. 'I am the clan heir and a genius and the future of the clan. I won't be weak like him.' His face put on a determined look and Minato broke his gaze.

"Please do well in your classes, ask for help when you need it and practice every day. But don't forget to have fun, too. Now, I would like to introduce the Third Hokage, who wouldn't miss an opportunity to talk to you for anything in the world." There was more clapping and the two men shook hands and the Third stepped up onto the podium.

"Welcome children. It pleases this old heart to no end to see you today. Every year more and more of you are born into this village, and watching you grow up has been a privilege. I hope to still be standing here in a few years when you exit this fine institution wearing the Konoha ninja headband as brand new genin." He spoke slowly and calmly, like an old grandfather telling a story. The kids were spellbound.

When the ceremony ended Itachi rejoined his parents. The elders left to walk back to the compound. Minato and his wife Kushina were standing nearby and turned to speak with them.

"That was an interesting speech, Minato." Fugaku used the man's name instead of his title. Minato immediately noticed the lack of respect and took it as a warning. Dead men don't need titles.

"I meant every word of it, Fugaku." He sighed. "Every god damned word." The two men stared at each other for a couple minutes. Sasuke broke the silence when he started to cry. Mikoto started to stroke the baby's head and he quieted down with a few whimpers.

"Oh, he's so cute!" Kushina said, peeking over to look at the baby. Mikoto laughed.

"You're having a baby, too." Itachi said it as if he was stating a fact. Kushina laughed at him.

"Yes! In October. We can hardly wait." Her eyes sparkled as she talked. "So, do you think Sasuke and my baby will be friends? They should be going to the Academy at the same time."

"Oh. Yes, then. Sasuke is going to be very powerful, so he'll have to work hard to keep up. Maybe Sasuke could help him." Itachi was dead serious. Fugaku and Minato were so surprised at the boy's demeanor that they both turned around as they tried to keep from laughing.

"Yes, it would be great it Sasuke helps him. Perhaps he will also be able to teach Sasuke some things too?" Kushina was very amused at Itachi.

"Of course. My friend Shisui and I are always teaching each other things. I taught him how to throw a kunai, and he taught me some Taijutsu moves."

"We better get back home. I need to get to work." Fugaku interrupted. They all bid their farewells to each other and made there way to the horse carriage that had brought them there.

"What a great kid!" Kushina said to her husband.

"Yeah." But in his mind, he thought the boy was kind of creepy. When he had caught the boys gaze earlier he had returned it without any kind of hesitation, if it were possible, it had almost been aggressive. He was also very serious. But when he turned his thoughts to Fugaku he felt remorse. The man was stubborn. He could tell that his words had no effect on him.

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The next day Itachi was standing in front of the Academy and the butterflies in his stomach were nerve wracking, to say the least. This was it. This was the beginning of his ninja career. He had to succeed. There were so many people depending on him, telling him he would do well. If he messed up they would be disappointed. He could imagine his father yelling and hitting him, his mother turning away in disgust, Kentaro shaking his head and walking away, Kagura looking at the ground, and Madara. If he failed, Madara would lecture him, then refuse to train him. Perhaps even Shisui would stop being his friend. He would be alone. His memory suddenly went back to a dream he had at the Uchiha hideout last summer, a dream of himself walking with a bloody sword, alone. He gulped loudly.

"Itachi, are you okay?" Shisui put his hand on his cousin's shoulder and bent down to look him in the eye. He was concerned. When he had started school he had run inside immediately, he was so excited. Yet Itachi was standing stock still and his face had gone white.

"Shisui." Itachi whispered very quietly and Shisui had to move his head closer to hear him talking. "If I fail, will you still be my friend?"

"Yes, cousin. Forever." So that is what's wrong. He's scared. It was very unlike him. He was acting like a five year old boy. Shisui had never thought of Itachi as being younger than him. He was small, even for a boy his age, but his mind and maturity matched that of a seven year old, maybe even older. "And don't worry, I won't tell anyone you were scared. I promise." He whispered back to his cousin. Itachi looked him in the eye, then smiled and walked forward. "After school, meet me here at the front door, and we will go to the back field and practice some more. Okay?" Shisui tried to be cheerful, and Itachi smiled and nodded his head.

A few minutes later Itachi walked into his classroom. There were two rows of desks that tiered upward from the teacher's desk. Each row had space for four students. The kids who were at the ceremony the day before were slowly filing into the room and looking around confused.

"Itachi! Come up here!" Kabuto was sitting down in the second row and waving his hand. Itachi went over and sat next to him, mainly because it seemed like something to do other than stand around. "You were right about the Kunai's. Father bought me some smaller ones last night and I didn't drop them. I didn't hit the target either, but it's a start." He had a big grin.

"Oh. Well, you have to practice a lot." Itachi return a small smile, but he was still feeling very nervous. The images of his disappointed clan kept floating around in his head. Kabuto looked at the boy and knew something was wrong. But he didn't have time to ask him about it.

"Everyone! Find a seat and sit down." The woman that walked into the classroom looked like she was in her late twenties. She wore her blonde hair in a bun at the back of her head with a blue cloth tied around it that hung down her back. She wore ninja clothes consisting of a fishnet shirt covered with a blue tunic, black pants and tall open-toed boots. She had piercing blue eyes. "My name is Chisako Wada. You will call me Sensei Chisako, or just Sensei. I will be your home-room teacher for the next four quarters. I will be teaching you about weapons and jutsus. The boys and girls will be split into separate classes for one hour a day for special training. You will also be split up according to reading ability for two hours each day. Those who do not know how to read, or have low comprehension will be in my reading class. The rest will be taking classes on history and literature with another teacher." She looked at the confused faces. "Do not worry if this sounds confusing. We will tell you where to go for the first few weeks." She smiled. "Now, we are going to start off with a reading test, then take a math test. This will decide which classes you will be moved into."

Itachi looked down at the piece of paper Sensei Chisako had placed in front of him. He was holding his pencil. The first twenty questions had been an oral test. The teacher read ten words and they had to select the words out of a list and circle them. Then they had to spell the next ten words she recited. He had gotten all of them correct. The last part of the test consisted of reading a short paragraph, then picking the sentence that best described the action in the sentence. Itachi noticed that most of the other students weren't taking the test. He assumed they didn't know how to read. Kabuto was answering the questions though.

The math test was next. It started out with simple counting, then addition and subtraction, then multiplication and division. Itachi completed the entire test. Sensei Chisako noticed he had finished and, after picking up his paper put a new one down in front of him. "See how many of these you can answer." She smiled at him.

Itachi lifted his pencil. It was simple algebra. "If a =4, solve for b: a+7=b" Itachi scribbled the answer on the paper. The next group of questions were geometry. He held his pencil over the paper, but he didn't know how to solve the radius of a circle, or the area of a square.

"That's okay, Itachi." The teacher came back and took the paper. "You are the first person to answer any questions on this page of the test. It looks like we may place you in an Algebra class. I'll have to speak with the headmaster." Chisako was amazed. She was a little leery of having a five year old in her class, the last time she did he had to be removed after a week because he couldn't handle the stress. This boy was apparently very different. He had answered the reading exam and 1-1/2 pages of the math exam correctly. "Maybe we should also place you in a higher level literature class as well." She turned around and walked back to her desk.

"Way to go, Itachi!" Kabuto nudged him and smiled broadly. "You are so smart!"

"Thanks. I have studied with my mother every morning for years." Itachi was feeling better after the teacher's comments. Maybe he wouldn't disappoint his clan after all. He sighed heavily and smiled, feeling a heavy weight lifting from his shoulders.

"I know how to read, but I don't remember learning. I didn't know any math, though, except for the counting bit of course." Kabuto gave a short laugh and scratched the back of his neck.

When class ended Itachi made his way to Shisui in front of the school. There were a lot of other kids filing out of the building and it was very noisy. The first thing Shisui noticed when he saw his cousin was how relaxed he appeared. The boy was smiling and talking to another boy with white hair and glasses. The white haired boy waved to Itachi and took off running.

"Hi Itachi! Did you have fun?" Shisui gave him a big smile.

"Yes! I get to take Algebra and Literature with a higher level class." He pulled out his schedule and showed it to his friend.

Shisui's eyes widened in excitement. "Those are my classes too! Cool! I can hardly wait for tomorrow!"

"Wow!" Itachi was also smiling broadly. But he looked a few feet away and saw a familiar face. Yota. The bully was talking to three other boys his own age. He turned around and met Itachi's gaze.

"Hello there Itachi." The greeting was very icy.

"Hello Yota. Have you been training?" Itachi spoke in a normal voice and he was still smiling.

"Training, what for? I'm a Hyuuga. My talents come naturally." His arrogance was feigned. Everyone could see how nervous he was. His friends (if that was what they were) looked at him curiously.

Two other children who were standing nearby walked up. Both were obviously from the Hyuuga clan. "What talent?" The taller of the two, a girl with short black hair and wearing a knee-length green skirt laughed at him.

The second one, a boy with shoulder length black hair wearing blue shorts and a white shirt, joined in. "You lost a fight to a five year old. You're worthless and everyone knows it."

The girl leered at him. "Just quit school so you don't disgrace the clan, you looser." They walked away laughing. The three boys that were with Yota shouldered their backpacks.

"Coming to the park, Yota?" One of the boys asked.

Yota started to answer when Itachi interrupted. "No he is not. He is going to train with us." Shisui, Yota, and Yota's friends looked at the small boy in shock.

"And who are you?" One of the boys asked.

Itachi looked at him. He was tall with brown hair and green eyes, and he was wearing shorts and a tank top. His smirk spoke of a person that was used to getting his way. "I am Itachi Uchiha, heir to the Uchiha clan. Yota is going to train with us because I want a rematch. Since I will not fight weaklings, Yota must become strong." Itachi stood his ground and locked his gaze with Yota instead of the brown haired boy.

The boy didn't believe him. "What a looser. Come on Yota let's go to the park." He started to walk away. Yota didn't move and continued to look at the small boy. "Yota! I said come on!" He yelled at him this time.

Yota had a lot of things going through his mind. He had been publicly humiliated after he lost the fight. His clan lord, Hiashi, had made it known in the clan that their weakest member had lost a fight with a five year old boy. His father had also been humiliated and had taken it out on him. Repeatedly. Training sessions had turned into "let's beat the shit out of Yota" sessions. Needless to say, Yota hadn't learned anything from his father. Was this boy going to train him the same way? What could a boy four years younger than himself do? Besides beat him up. Again. But he did offer to train him.

"I'm going with Itachi today. I'll…um…see you guys tomorrow." Yota looked at the ground, and winced when the older boy smacked him in the head, then walked off. He suddenly felt like crying and had to blink his eyes several times. He was thoroughly humiliated and didn't feel like he could go any lower. "Um…Itachi…I'm not very good. I really don't have any talent. My father and mother told me so."

"Well, I was told you are a Hyuuga and that you have lots of talent. I told you. I won't fight a weakling, so you need to get stronger." Itachi stood his ground.

Shisui suddenly smiled. "Well, Yota, let's go out back and practice Kunai throwing. It'll be fun, you'll see!"

As they walked around the school building to the training grounds, Kabuto peeked out from behind a pillar. He had watched the whole thing. That Itachi was really a strong and unique kid. Just like he'd been told. He walked home smiling. 'This is going to be easy.' He thought to himself.

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Itachi showed his schedule to his parents at dinner. They were both very proud of him. Being accepted into higher level classes would surely speed up his graduation. Mikoto was also excited to learn that he would be sharing two classes with his cousin. Itachi promised to study hard.

That night Itachi and Fugaku trained for two hours. They started out with Taijutsu and finished with throwing stars. Itachi was becoming very adept with his Taijutsu. Fugaku knew he was getting extra lessons, but the lessons were sporadic lately. This must mean that his "trainer" was busy doing other things. He had also seen Shisui's Taijutsu, and he was also much better. He figured that the two boys probably had a good chance of graduating at nearly the same time.

Fugaku knew who was training the boys and had spelled out the consequences to Kentaro should that training be used against the clan. He knew Kentaro had taken him seriously, but the elder was…difficult. He had practically raised Fugaku since he was a child and he felt affection and gratitude toward the man. He was a strong pillar to hang onto when Fugaku's world fell apart after his father's execution. And he still was. But the paint on the pillar had worn off with age, and Fugaku was starting to see the real surface that existed underneath. And he didn't like it.

It was midnight. Sasuke was trying to reach the toys hanging down from the mobile perched over his crib. It was quietly playing a simple melody that was meant to relax babies. Fugaku looked down at the boy, then reached in and straightened the blanket. The ninja cat that was curled up at the foot of the crib looked up at him.

"The kitten is fine. But you should have called us sooner." The cat sat up on his haunches.

"Yeah, probably. But from now on I want one of you guys to keep watch over him at all times, and I want a second ninja cat available to notify me or Mikoto if someone other than the two of us, Itachi, or the housekeeper come near Sasuke."

"What do you think is going on?"

"I have a lot of ideas about what is going on. But why Sasuke might be in danger…I'm not so sure about that yet. I might just be overreacting." He turned around and started walking to his bedroom when he felt someone's presence on the porch.

"Kentaro. You finally showed up. Where have you been? I've been trying to get a hold of you for a week." Fugaku walked onto the porch, suddenly in a very bad mood.

"I know. I'm sorry, but I had a feeling what this conversation was going to be and I have been avoiding you." Both men had their Sharingans activated.

"Then let's walk down by the lake and discuss it." Fugaku walked down the steps and onto the path. They reached the lake and sat down on a bench facing the water. The late July evening was warm and pleasant.

"I know Madara is Sasuke's father. I also know you are an agent of Madara. You go to him and tell him to keep his hands off of the baby. Tonight." Fugaku looked across at the black waters of the lake. He knew it was dangerous to speak these words out loud, at this point in time, but he had to protect his…yes, his son. He wanted to keep Sasuke as his own.

Kentaro stood up without saying anything and started to walk away.

"What? No parting words?" Fugaku taunted the elder.

"I have nothing to say." His chakra suddenly spiked. "Itachi!" Fugaku stood up quickly and turned around. Itachi was standing in shock with his mouth wide open.

"Father… Kentaro… Sasuke is…" Itachi wanted to say something that could reverse what he had just heard.

"What are you doing down here?" Fugaku felt his heart drop down into his stomach. He hadn't wanted Itachi hear what he had told Kentaro.

"Training." It was difficult to say the word. His mind felt numb. He turned around and ran down the road away from the lake and the house.

"Itachi! Come back here!" His father yelled after him. The boy ran faster, and Fugaku clenched his hands into fists. "Kentaro. If you are still here in five seconds I swear I will rip you up into a thousand pieces."

Kentaro knew, as soon as he saw Itachi, that his life was over. There was no way Fugaku would let him live, whether Madara's plan succeeded or not. He had just placed himself between a father and his son, and lost. He gave Fugaku one last look, and walked home.

Fugaku looked down the road in the direction Itachi had run. "I'll give him an hour, then go after him. I have to think of a way to explain this to him anyway." He spoke into the night air.

Sitting in a tree twenty feet away Madara had heard the entire thing. He was not happy. Itachi was a genius. Explaining this would be tricky and could turn the boy against his brother, parents, Kentaro, Kagura, himself. 'I better go find him.' Madara said to himself. 'I only have about forty-five minutes'.

Itachi had run to the park and was sitting on a bench under a streetlight. He was shocked. He was disappointed. He felt betrayed. The bench moved a little as someone sat down next to him. "Madara." Itachi said the name as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Itachi. This isn't going to be easy to explain." Madara looked down at the small boy. He was sitting with his head facing down and his hands clenched tightly in his lap.

"There is nothing to explain. So. Sasuke isn't really my brother. That's all there is to it." Itachi was so mad he was having trouble getting the words out.

"Sasuke is your half-brother. That is still…" Madara stopped talking as Itachi suddenly launched himself at him, kicking and hitting. It only lasted a few seconds before he wrapped his arms around the boy and sat him down in his lap. "Now, if you will calm down for a few minutes. We don't have much time to talk before your father comes looking for you."

"Why, do you need to tell me a lie to tell my father?" Itachi spat out. Madara really wanted to smack the boy across the face at the moment, but decided that it probably wouldn't help his case any if he did.

His voice was dark when he spoke to Itachi. "Sasuke is your brother. You share the same mother. That makes him your brother in blood. You love him, that makes him your brother in spirit. _Never_ forget that. I believe you told me your mother asked you to protect him? Never forget that either. He is just as much her son as you are."

"But why couldn't my father be Sasuke's father, too?" Itachi tried to move but Madara was holding him very tightly. So tight it hurt.

"Because…perhaps I should wait and let Fugaku explain that to you. I will tell you that it was his idea to not father the child. There is more to it than that, though. My council suggested that I should be the father. I… accepted. However, if it had not been me it would have been someone else." He felt the boy struggling to free himself, but kept his hold on him.

"What about my mother?" Itachi finally stopped moving and sat still.

"She knows nothing about what is going on. Let's leave it that way." He released the boy and stood him on his feet. Itachi looked him in the eye.

"Obito would never do something like this." Itachi spoke in a tone that Madara had never heard before. Cold, calculating.

"Itachi. _Never_ make the mistake of attacking me again. I am, and always will be more powerful than you. Do not make me prove it. I am here to train you. As I said before, I have plans for your future, a future that will lead you on a path to a power your clan runs away from. You are a genius, you have so much potential that leaving you to the likes of Fugaku alone would be a waste. I will not abandon you, but I also will not hold back if I need to discipline you. Power is useless if it is not coupled with discipline. I regret that you heard the news so soon. Your father is coming, listen to his explanation, but be slow to judge. Think before you attack, even if you have to take a day or two to do it. Some situations require more thought than others. Whatever you decide, do not hate Sasuke or your mother. They are both innocent in all this." He disappeared as Fugaku rounded the corner. He stopped and stared at his son.

Itachi sat back down on the bench, then, in the same cold, calculating voice he used on Madara he addressed his father. "Explain yourself."

The words took Fugaku aback. He blinked a few times at their coldness. This was not a five year old boy sitting in front of him. What was it? 'I'll have to tell him the truth.' Fugaku sighed and sat down on the bench. "Itachi. I made a terrible mistake. I thought of myself instead of the welfare of the clan." He sighed again. He was not used to talking about his feelings, or showing emotion. Explaining himself to a child seemed even more absurd.

"Itachi, your grandfather, my father, was a man who loved to kill. He killed on his missions, and it wasn't always out of self defense. In fact, the last few years of his life he wouldn't just kill his targets. He would go looking for someone powerful enough to challenge and fight them to the death. He was obsessed with proving his power. Eventually the Kage found out, then others in the village. The clan was disgraced and he was executed by the council of elders. Before he died he killed my mother and was going to kill me, but instead he made me promise never to have any children. I broke his promise and had you. But I couldn't live with the guilt and I had a medical procedure done that would prevent me from having anymore children." He stopped talking and the breeze picked up a little, and some fallen leaves rolled across the pavement.

"But how did mother get pregnant then?" Itachi was watching his father closely.

"I take it you know how babies are created?" He hoped the answer was "no".

"Yes, mother told me."

Fugaku sighed and wiped his hand across his face, then tried for a very simplistic answer. "A doctor can remove sperm from a man and the egg from a woman, combine them, then put the egg back into the woman. That is how Sasuke was born. Do you understand that?"

"Yes. There is still something about grandfather you aren't telling me." Itachi was very direct.

"There is a lot about him I am not telling you. But one day, I will tell you. I want… I want you to grow up a little more. To develop your own personality without being weighed down by his legacy. He was my devil, I don't want him to be yours too. Please don't ask me or anyone else anymore questions about him. What I told you a few minutes ago was the truth, it was not the whole truth, but… just honor my request, Itachi."

"Yes. I will." Itachi stood up. "Sasuke is my brother, no matter what."

"And he is my son. Just as much as you are." Fugaku stood up and stretched. "Let's not tell your mother about this conversation. She doesn't know that I'm not the baby's father. I don't want to hurt her feelings."

"I won't tell her. But I think you should, someday." They walked back to the house.

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Kentaro looked up as Madara appeared in his living room. He had been sitting on the couch, in the dark, trying to think about nothing.

"So. How does it feel to be a dead man." Madara's dry humor was not appreciated, but Kentaro knew that pointing that out would be a waste of time.

"It's not quite as much fun as you'd think it'd be." The smile he usually had on his face was gone. He looked over at an end table that had a family photo recently taken during the gathering a few months ago. His daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren. And his wife. His marriage had been arranged by their parents, and it had taken nearly forty years for them to fall in love. But now, Saiyu was very precious to him. If only he had seen that back then. All those years, wasted.

"Regret is the only thing you take with you to the after-life, Kentaro. Try again to switch places with Kagura. The sealing ceremony will kill her, and she still has many years ahead of her."

"I have been trying to switch with her. I have even considered over-powering her right before she starts the ceremony. She sees the baby as her grandson. You know that. Even though we tell her he isn't, that there is no way it could be. She doesn't understand. Or refuses to understand. Her grip on reality is fading. Even Rin, her student, has confided in me her concerns." He bowed his head. "Her husband is also concerned and has been trying to talk her into switching with me as well. He said that she has threatened to kill herself if we prevent her from doing the sealing." He heard a sharp intake of breath and looked up. Madara was staring straight at him. He was sure, that if the mask fell off his face would have an expression of shock on it.

"So be it. There will be no more talk of switching. However, she should be supervised during the sealing. I perceive that her attachment to the baby may prevent her from going through with it. You shall be there with her and take over if she hesitates." He turned around to look out the sliding glass doors. "Oh, and Kentaro. If Kagura does hesitate, kill her." He disappeared.

Kentaro's eyes were wide with shock. He knew Madara had a cold heart, but he wasn't prepared for this. Kagura was the last person he expected the man to harm. The time was nearing. In a few short months the clan's future would be reclaimed. If that happened, then it didn't matter if he or Kagura died. What mattered was that Madara would regain his rightful place with the Sharingan's true power, and the children of the clan would have the power that was rightfully theirs. When the sun invaded the small living room he moved to the kitchen and made some tea. He watched as the merchants across the street opened their stalls, and saw Itachi and Shisui racing each other down the street on their way to school. They looked so innocent. But they weren't. No one with Uchiha blood could ever be called innocent. He felt something wet fall on his hand. It was a tear.

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The following Saturday Kentaro walked to Fugaku's house to pick up the boys for their training session with Madara. Itachi, Shisui and Fugaku were standing on the steps, and Mikoto was sitting in a rocking chair with Sasuke. They made a pretty picture, Kentaro thought. "Hello there!" He smiled at them. They returned the greeting.

"So! Are you ready to go practice today?" He asked cheerfully.

"Yeah! Are we staying out all day, like we usually do, or do want to come back early?" Shisui asked. Kentaro guessed that the boy's mother had told him not to keep the old man out too long, especially if he had other things to do.

"It's okay, Shisui, this old man has nothing to do today, except watch a couple boys training to take his place." He laughed at his little joke, and the boys smiled.

"Are you going to work today Fugaku?" Kentaro looked at the clan leader.

"Yes. We found some of the missing genin last night. Dead. They were found near the East training field 14, so I wanted to warn you to stay away from that area. Also, if you see any other kids or teenagers who are by themselves, warn them."

"I will. I sure hope this ends soon. How many more have gone missing?"

"Ten in the last two weeks, for a total of thirtyfour. We have placed a curfew of 10:00 pm for anyone under eighteen to protect them, but the teenagers are feeling picked on, so we don't think it will be enforceable."

"Pity." He looked at the boys. "Well, if it's Orochimaru, he won't get past me. The boys are safe."

Fugaku smirked. "Yes, your Sharingan is the perfect foil to his jutsu." He watched as they walked down the road. He considered canceling the boys training when he realized who was conducting it, but in reality, Madara was doing a very good job of teaching the boys. His only concern was the propaganda that he might also be teaching them. However, neither Itachi nor Shisui had been displaying any personality or behavioral changes so he allowed the training to continue.

"Are you really that strong, Kentaro?" Shisui asked excitedly. They were all walking outside the main Konoha gate.

"Yeah, I am. Surprised?" He gave the boy a lop-sided smile, then laughed at him. "I'm very old, Shisui. I remember Madara when I was a very, very small boy. I remember the First Hokage."

"Wow. I wonder what it will be like when I'm old." Shisui had a big smile on his face.

"Yeah. We'll sit around in rocking chairs at the temple and yell at the kids to quit running in the meditation garden." Itachi gave a short laugh, remembering an incident when he was three and had done just that.

Kentaro's smile faded and he felt his heart skip. Shisui… He knew what Shisui's fate would be. He knew Itachi's destiny. And Sasuke. All this was being done to make Itachi stronger, and to give Madara the ultimate power of the Sharingan. It had to be done. 'Ah Kentaro,' he scolded himself 'you may be a dead man walking, but you're not dead yet. Enjoy yourself more.'

There was a sudden chakra spike directly in front of them.

"Boys! Stop! Get behind me, now." Kentaro activated his Sharingan as the boys ran behind him. Directly in front of him was a man with pastey white skin, long stringy black hair and yellow snake eyes. Kentaro made a few signs then said "Mangekyo Sharingan". The boys heard this and wondered what he was doing. Standing behind him they couldn't see his eyes.

"Ah! Kentaro Uchiha. It has been a long time since I have seen you. And you have brought young Itachi and Shisui with you. It is very nice to meet you, boys." He paused. "And it appears Madara Uchiha has joined the party as well." Madara appeared behind the snake man, immediately taking up a fighting stance.

"Boys, with great displeasure, I introduce Orochimaru. The man personally responsible for the abduction and murder of thirtyfour genin and chunin." Kentaro spat the words with distaste.

"Oh come now, Kentaro Uchiha, some of them survived." He laughed.

"What is your business with us. Surely you did not meet us here by chance." Madara spoke in a loud, menacing voice. The chakra emanating from Kentaro and Madara was overwhelming. It spoke of power and death and Itachi and Shisui felt like it was ten times stronger than Fugaku's chakra.

"Boys. Under no circumstances are you to leave my side." Kentaro spoke to them. He could feel their fear and knew that he and Madara were causing most of it with their chakra.

"I just wanted to say hello. Is there a problem with that?" Orochimaru's words were evenly spaced and spoken in a feminine tone. Not to mention he was wearing a white Kimono with black trim. He hadn't moved an inch since he appeared, and he kept his eyes on the two boys. Suddenly he laughed and disappeared. Kentaro let out a sigh, that was really more of a growl.

Madara walked over to where Orochimaru was and searched the ground. Kentaro looked around at the ground as well. The boys saw his eyes. They were red, but instead of tomoes the pupil was shaped like a pinwheel. "He got away." Madara said menacingly.

"Yeah. I don't see him anywhere either." Kentaro turned his sharingan off and rubbed his eyes, grimacing.

"Are you okay?" Shisui asked.

"Yeah, that sharingan gives me a headache." Kentaro turned around to face Madara. "Shall we go?"

"Okay, this way boys." He led them to a different area than the one they usually trained in. Kentaro laid down on the grass and fell asleep.

"Is he really okay?" Itachi asked Madara.

"He will be. The sharingan he used is forbidden because of the toll it takes on the user. He will sleep for a few hours to regain his strength and be okay when it's time to go home. There's nothing to worry about."

"That man. Orochimaru. Is he after Shisui and I?" Itachi's foresight showed itself and Madara once again smiled at the boy's intelligence.

"Yes, he is. He has coveted the Sharingan for years. I am going to have to ask that neither one of you leave your houses unaccompanied. That includes walking to school or playing outside. The fact that he would appear in front of both Kentaro and me like that is very arrogant. Orochimaru is not one to make vain mistakes. He is arrogant beyond measure, but he is not stupid or careless."

"What should we do it he does get one or both of us alone?" Shisui had a worried look on his face.

"Shisui, there isn't a god-damned thing you could do. He is so far above your level it would be like an ant trying to avoid your foot. It can't be done." Both boys swallowed hard at his news. They knew ninja could be very powerful, and that their clan was at the top in terms of power, but neither one of them had actually experienced it yet. It was all stories – some of them they even found hard to believe.

"Boys. He won't get you alone if you accept the protection of your clan and follow their orders. They want to help you. They will protect you with their lives." He paused and quickly changed the subject, "Now, today I wanted to start teaching you about Genjutsu." The boy's faces lit up at that. Genjutsu was one the trademarks of their clan.

Madara spent the day teaching the boys a basic Genjutsu that consisted of making each other think they had turned into a tree. Shisui figured it out first, this time. Itachi got it working a couple hours later. He then had them try some Taijutsu and mix in their new Genjutsu to throw each other off. Kentaro woke up for lunch, then went back to sleep for a couple more hours, waking up again an hour before it was time to leave.

When they reached the village Kentaro took them to the police station and asked them to sit in the waiting room while he talked to Fugaku.

Kentaro walked into Fugaku's office without knocking and closed the door.

"What happened?" Fugaku was instantly alert.

"Orochimaru made an appearance this morning." He sat down in one of the chairs in front of Fugaku's desk.

"Details."

"Just that. We were walking down the road and he used a transportation jutsu to appear in front of us. He said he wanted to see the boys, then he left. He also suggested that not all of the kidnapped kids are dead." Kentaro was still feeling tired.

"You had to use the Mangekyou Sharingan. No doubt that is why he left. He probably didn't know anyone still alive could use it." Fugaku was actually relieved that Kentaro had been with the children. Although, there were a few members of the clan, including himself, who could put up a good fight against Orochimaru, with Kentaro, there wouldn't have been much of a fight at all. Orochimaru was probably shocked when the meek old man walking with two small children turned out to not be as meek as he looked. Not to mention Madara probably showed up as well.

"Too bad I had the kids with me. I could have attacked him. I'd give anything to see _his_ head on a pike." Kentaro had a sneer on his face. "By the way, the children will require an escort at all times until that slimy snake man is caught."

"Of course. I was just thinking that too. I'll get a schedule worked out. I have to work late tonight so tell the kids that they are not to leave their houses without an Uchiha ninja with them. When they get out of school they are not to leave the building without their escort. It will always be someone they know. I realize they want to stay late and practice, so I'll make sure the ninja chosen will stay with them. I will send a ninja to guard the two houses as well. That way no one can get in when they are sleeping. It also ensures extra protection for Sasuke."

"Sounds good. I left the kids in the waiting room, so I'd better take them home now."

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_Itachi was walking down the Uchiha compounds main street. He was holding a red bloody sword in front of him. _

_Anger. _

_Hatred. _

"_Why are there no ghosts?" He heard his voice._

"_I am alone." He heard his voice again._

_Crying…_

_Sasuke was crying…_

Itachi cried out and sat up. His heart was beating so fast it felt like it would explode. He jumped out of bed and ran to Sasuke's room. The baby was crying, but he was okay. Itachi breathed out in relief then talked softly to the baby, stroking his face and hands until he stopped crying and fell asleep. He laid down on the floor next to the crib. Why did he have that dream again? Why did he wake up in a panic over Sasuke crying? Was Sasuke crying in the dream, or did Sasuke crying in his crib wake him up from the dream? He fell asleep and the questions went unanswered.

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**Wow, Itachi has a lot of people interested in him. **

**Please review. Pretty Please? I'll give you some left over Christmas candy ^^**

**Next time: Chapter 10 - Battle preparations begin! **

**In Two weeks - Chapter 11- the big battle begins (it will be spread over several chapters). **

**Make sure you add this to your story alerts so you get an email when I update (every Friday).**


	10. Chapter 10 Prepare for Battle

**Time to prepare for battle – it's only a month away.**

**Please review. You know you want to. You… do want to, right? Of course you do.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 10 – Prepare for Battle**

Itachi and Shisui were not allowed outside of the house without a bodyguard. Neither was happy about this. Living in the Uchiha compound they had been allowed to roam around since they were four. There was always an adult around to watch out for them and they never felt any danger. But that was before their encounter with Orochimaru and the subsequent discovery of the corpses. There were three survivors, but they were in bad shape. By the end of September, only one of them was still alive. The rumor was that the lone survivor had been a student of his, a young orphan girl he had picked up somewhere named Anko. The rumors also said that all of them had a strange circular seal on their shoulders that fed off their chakra.

The snake man hadn't been seen again since that day a month earlier when he had appeared before Kentaro and Madara. Perhaps they had scared him off, or perhaps he was already on his way out of the village and decided to pay his respects to the two Uchiha boys. But no one was taking any chances. Anko had talked about a secret chamber, and from her description it was close by and unknown. It was therefore determined that Orochimaru was operating one (or more) laboratories within the Konoha area. Which would explain why he kept coming back. Armed with that knowledge Anbu started an in depth investigation of the area. Anko tried to help, but she was too traumatized and had no clear memories of anything that happened before she woke up in the hospital. Despite all their efforts, they were unable to find anything.

Fugaku was keeping close tabs on his clan. Both the ninja's and the civilians. He met with everyone, even if it was on the street to gossip. He had even traveled to the Fire country capital to meet the few clan members living there. As he spoke to his people he made mental notes on each of them, then, when he got home, he shut himself in his meeting room and wrote out his thoughts, comparing and cross-checking and making lists. He had to know. He had to be sure.

Word finally came back to him that all of the scrolls had been mastered, and the teams were now practicing to reinforce their new-found knowledge. He was pleased at the news. But upon reviewing the teams themselves he ended up moving some people around. Kentaro noticed a pattern and passed the alarming news on to Madara. Madara laughed and said not to worry about it. It seemed that all of Madara's supporters were being segregated into their own teams. Fugaku was certainly turning out to be very resourceful. Kentaro started to wonder if it wasn't so much that Fugaku was "resourceful" as it was that Madara was being arrogant. He began to look forward to October, knowing that he would not live to see November.

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Kentaro was walking through the woods with Itachi and Shisui. It was a warm September day. The early morning sun filtered through the canopy of early autumn colored leaved. The boys had improved their Taijutsu remarkably since they had started their training a year ago. They were also starting to learn Genjutsu, and while Shisui was turning out to be better, Itachi was still exceptionally good at it as well. Madara had expressed his surprise at Shisui's abilities a year ago, and Kentaro had to agree. The boy was at least as good if not a little better than Itachi. He wondered if Madara was reconsidering which boy he would use in a few years. It would be a wise move, let the boys grow up at their own pace, then pick the one best suited for the task.

"Why are you boys so quiet today?" Kentaro suddenly realized that neither of the kids had said anything since they left the village.

"Huh?" Shisui hadn't really been thinking of anything, just walking.

Itachi was looking straight ahead. "Genjutsu. I need more practice."

"Well, practice is all it takes. You certainly have the aptitude." They stopped and looked around. "It looks like we beat him here today. Time to sit down and rest." Kentaro found a spot in the sun and sat with his back against a tree.

Shisui and Itachi stared at him, then pointed a foot to his right where a three foot tall sapling grew. "Genjutsu!" They both yelled, smiling.

Madara appeared, laughing at them and Kentaro snickered. "Well done! You're observational abilities are growing." He spoke as he walked over to the boys and knelt down to their level. "What do you say we try a transportation jutsu today? Just to see how far you've come."

"Yeah!" Shisui was ecstatic. It was the one jutsu he wanted to learn more than anything.

"Cool!" Itachi was excited too, but he also figured he would have trouble with it. He was more than willing to give it a try, though. He felt his strengths leaned more towards Taijutsu.

"Ok then. The first thing you have to know is this works better with the Sharingan, but as you've probably seen, non-Uchiha ninja also do it so it isn't impossible. It can be quite dangerous if done improperly, so if I sense you aren't ready I'm going to stop you, and I will ask you at that point not to try it again until you are older." He stood up and adjusted his orange and black mask and took off his cloak, putting it down on a large pack leaning against a tree at the edge of the clearing. He showed them the hand signs for the jutsu and made them practice until they could do them at a blinding speed.

"Now, you are going to start the jutsu with the same mindset as you would when casting a Genjutsu. Only, instead of placing a Genjutsu at a specific spot, you put yourself. You both have mastered location when determining where to place a Genjutsu. Shisui, you try it first." Madara and Itachi moved to the edge of the clearing, while Shisui stood in the middle. He closed his eyes and concentrated on a spot one foot in front of where he was standing. He imagined creating a Genjutsu in that spot. Then he changed the image to his body. When he had a clear vision of himself one foot in front of where he was standing he quickly did the hand signs and pushed himself to the spot. He opened his eyes and looked at his companions. They were staring at him in shock.

"What's wrong?" He looked at where he was. "I did it!" He yelled and jumped up and down a couple times.

"Wow." Kentaro stared wide-eyed at him. In all his years he had never seen anyone do that jutsu the first time.

"That's amazing Shisui." Madara said, also with shock in his voice. He hadn't expected either of the boys to be able to come even close to doing it.

Itachi blinked his eyes a couple time and gulped, a little nervous. "My turn." He said in his normal voice. Shisui and Itachi traded places. Itachi stood in the center of the clearing and closed his eyes. He did his jutsu a little different from Shisui. He imagined himself casting a Genjutsu of his body a foot in front of him, then actually put the Genjutsu there. He then did the hand signs and… "It worked! I did it too!"

Shisui ran over and patted him on the back "Good going, cousin! That was kind of creepy, the way you put a Genjutsu in the spot before your body, it looked like a ghost. I wonder if that would really scare someone if you did it in a fight?"

Kentaro was beyond shock. He put his hand over his heart to see if he was still alive and not dead or dreaming. Madara started laughing. 'I keep underestimating them.' He said to himself. 'I need to quit that.'

"Good work boys, I truly did not expect you be able to do that yet. You are both the geniuses our clan hoped for. Now, the next step is to not get cocky. If you mess up on this jutsu, like I said earlier, it can be disastrous. For the rest of the morning pick opposite ends of the clearing and move around, but don't go further than three feet. There are still a lot of trees around. This afternoon we'll work on performing the jutsu around obstacles." He sat down next to Kentaro and watched the boys transport themselves in circles.

When training was over the boys had successfully mastered the transportation jutsu over small distances. Madara was very, very pleased. The two boys were part of his long term plans and their advanced abilities, intelligence and drive were more than he could have wished for.

"Itachi, Shisui, as you both know our clan will be launching a major offensive against Konoha in a few weeks. Therefore, this will be out last training session for a while. I will contact you directly when I am ready to teach you again." The boys were crestfallen.

"It won't be too long, will it?" Shisui asked quietly.

He knelt down in front of the boys and put a hand on each boy's shoulder. He became serious and spoke in a stern voice. "I hope not, but if it is a long time, even a year or two, don't be upset_. I will not forget to come for you two_. _No matter what_. And if you ever hear anyone saying that I am dead, don't believe it. No one in Konoha has the power to kill me." He sighed. "Study in school, master your jutsu's and use what I have taught you to advance. Also, the battle next month is not your concern. Do not get involved. You are still children and we want you safe. In a few years it will be your turn to do battle. But not right now." He stood up and looked down at the boys. They looked up at him with a determined expression, then thanked him for training them and bowed. He bowed back, then disappeared.

When they got home Kentaro called Fugaku out of his house. He knew the clan leader was still mad at him, but he had to tell him about the jutsu. There was no secret between them anymore about Madara training the boys.

"Did you see Orochimaru again?" Fugaku was still leery of the man showing up and expected the worst when Kentaro asked to speak to him in private.

"Itachi and Shisui are truly remarkable boys, Fugaku. I have to tell you of their accomplishments." Kentaro smiled slightly. He was still a little shocked about what he had seen earlier.

"Oh? What happened?" Fugaku relaxed.

"You won't believe me, but it's true."

"Come one, what happened?" He was getting very curious.

"Madara taught them a transportation jutsu to test their Genjutsu, and they both did it. The first time. I have _never_ in all my years seen anyone do that jutsu without hours of practice."

"You are right. I don't believe you." Fugaku looked at the man standing in front of him. He was grinning like an idiot. "Damn, it's true! They did it, the first time? That's unheard of!"

"Well, I'm going home now." Kentaro walked away slowly down the road. Today was a good day. If only… "No. I will have no regrets." He said out loud. A couple walking past him turned their heads, but kept walking.

Fugaku was standing in the courtyard thinking about what Kentaro had told him. He really wanted to see Itachi perform the jutsu, but he didn't want to risk… What exactly?

"Itachi!" The boy walked outside a minute later. "Come here." He led him to an isolated part of the yard. "I'm not going to ask who taught you the transportation jutsu, and you are not going to volunteer any information, but I want to see you do it."

Itachi smiled at his father. "Yes!" He moved a few feet away, then concentrated. He performed the seals then appeared three feet away from where he started. He looked at his father with a big smile.

"Huh." He had to smile because Itachi rarely gave anyone such an open expression. "That was truly amazing. I don't think a five year old boy has ever done that before." He was very proud of his son. "You are truly a genius."

"Yes father. I will practice hard to master it so I can use it in battle."

"Very good."

"Dinners ready!" Mikoto yelled outside to her husband and son. Sasuke let out a yell. "Oh, does baby want his dinner too?" She cooed to him as she walked back inside.

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Yota was already in the training area when Itachi, Shisui, and their guard Okimi joined him. Okimi was a woman in her early twenties who had worked at the police station for five years. She wore knee length black pants with a short blue skirt and a blue tank top. A jounin type vest was worn over the tank top. She was a friendly person who liked to talk, but she was also a very intense person who was, more often than not, away from the village on missions for the clan. Babysitting two children wasn't something she really wanted to do, but considering who they were she considered it an honor. Besides, Itachi's teacher turned out to be an old friend of hers and they were able to catch up on all the old gossip.

"You've gotten a lot better with kunai throwing." Shisui observed as he and Itachi took the two empty targets next to Yota.

"Yes. I beet my two cousins yesterday. But I still have a long way to go." Yota threw his last kunai as he spoke. Out of ten kunai, he bullseyed eight.

"You mean the two kids who keep calling you a looser?" Itachi spoke quietly.

"Yeah."

"Hmmph. We never see them here after school, do we?" Itachi's words were accusing.

Yota smiled condescendingly. 'And you won't ever see them here. They would never be seen training in front of anyone not in the clan.' Yota said the words to himself, then out loud he answered Itachi "I'll be here, come rain or shine. I'd rather die of pneumonia than be called weak again. When I can beat my cousins at Taijutsu, I'll know I am one step closer to beating you, Itachi."

"Good." It was a short answer, but to Yota it spoke volumes. The boys were not friends and probably never would be. But they had an unspoken understanding that each would help the other get more powerful. In truth, Yota was a lot like Itachi, but without parents to push him he had strayed from his training. Now with a clear goal, and the means to attain it he had become very studious and single-minded in his training and school subjects. Nothing short of 100% was acceptable.

Shisui was mixing kunai and throwing stars. He wanted to throw the kunai off target, then use the stars to hit the kunai back on target. It was an idea he had thought of during algebra class instead of quadratic equations. His kunai were going all over the place. He tried again, throwing his kunai with his right hand and a star with his left hand. However, a second later the kunai was hit with a different star and landed in the bullseye.

"What?" Shisui muttered when he realized it wasn't his star that did it.

"Thought you needed some help." Itachi smiled at him.

Shisui laughed. "You startled me for a second. I was concentrating so hard. Though I think you did give me an idea. The angle you used was different from what I was using." He tried it again, and the Kunai hit the target two rings away from the center.

"I think it's probably harder to do both at the same time than to throw a star and hit someone else's kunai." Itachi observed. "But that is a really neat trick." Itachi switched his training to the kunai and star throwing for the rest of the afternoon.

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"Kagura's sure been around here a lot lately, wouldn't you say, Mikoto?" Fugaku and Mikoto were currently in their bedroom getting ready for bed. Mikoto was brushing her shoulder length black hair and Fugaku was looking outside.

"Yes. I did notice." She turned to look at her husband.

"I… I don't want her left alone with Sasuke. I have a bad feeling, and while a lot of different things are going through my head, nothing specific is standing out. I don't want Kagura to feel cut off. Just don't leave her alone." Fugaku didn't want to alarm his wife, but he did want to warn her. He knew that Kagura and her husband were the same as Kentaro. Spies for Madara. 'I will have to kill them.' The thought saddened him.

"I know. She is up to something, and it does have to do with Sasuke. Tell me, Fugaku. Tell me the truth. I know Sasuke's father is not you." Fugaku felt his heart fall into his stomach. "That much was obvious. Among other things, Kagura was crying a lot and trying to be extra cheerful to cover it up. Is Sasuke's father her husband?" Fugaku realized that it was a very logical deduction.

"No he is not." He paused. He didn't want to ask the next question, if she wanted to know who his father was, but she beat him to it.

"Then I don't need to know who it is. As long as you love him, then that's enough for me."

"Thank-you Mikoto." He bowed his head to her. To himself, he thought 'Kentaro, the rumors are true. Mikoto is too good for me.'

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Fugaku made his way to the temple the next morning. It was a gray, overcast day and chilly. A true autumn day. He heard Itachi, Shisui and Okimi run past him on their way to school and he smiled. He remembered doing the same thing with his cousins, a long, long time ago. And for a moment he longed again for those days. But then reality kicked in. Life was just as hard back then as it was now. For him at least. As a boy he had become the clan's leader when he was three, although Kentaro made most of the decisions for several years he was still put on a pedestal.

His cousins, as carefree and they seemed as children, were scared of him. He was his father's son, after all, and they all knew what he was. But still, back then, when he was a child, he could pretend he had no worries. Sometimes he could pretend he had parents waiting for him when he got home from school instead of returning to his empty house. However, he had a family now. His house was no longer empty, and one day it would be Itachi's house, where he would marry and raise his children.

Itachi. No matter what he was doing or where he was his thoughts always turned to his oldest son. 'My one wish' he thought to himself 'is that Itachi grows up with his parents, the way I wanted to grow up with mine.' The ninja war going on with the other shinobi nations and the offensive against Madara were both threatening to prevent that from happening. He knew Itachi was not having an easy time of it, and he was the one causing the problems. He didn't know how to raise a son. He had no practice. His instincts told him to protect him and keep him safe. To hold him in his arms when he cried and cheer for him when he laughed. But his duty as the clan leader was to train his heir to handle to harsh realities of becoming lord of the Uchiha clan. And those realities were indeed very harsh.

When he entered the temple the people gathered there bowed to him.

"I am glad you came. You will be here for about two months." The clan members assembled in front of him were from the Fire Country capital. He had re-called some of them back to the village to help with the offensive in October. "For security reasons I will not be filling you in on the details until right before the battle, so please be patient." The men and women in front of him nodded in acceptance. They had been ordered to Konoha on short notice and had traveled non-stop for two days, arriving only two hours ago. "That's all I have to say for now. I'll get going so you can get some sleep." He saw some of them smile at that. Yeah, it sucks to be tired when you know you have to keep awake.

He got lost in his thoughts again while walking to the police station. He didn't want to do it this way. He had to keep everything a secret. Fighting Madara was taboo to most of the clan. They would refuse. But he had a feeling he knew what Madara was planning. It was all in the tablet in the temple's secret chamber. If Madara won… Could his father have been involved with Madara somehow? He had never thought of that before. Maybe that is what he had meant when he said the "experiment" had failed? Fugaku's plan was to let Madara attack the village. There would be casualties. There would be destruction. He believed, after a lifetime of living and fighting alongside his clan that once they saw Konoha, their home, falling to someone they thought was their idol they would awaken from their stupor and fight alongside the village to stop him. The term was an old one. As old as war itself. And the person who spoke the words the same time Fugaku thought them was the last person he wanted to see right now.

"Acceptable Casualties." The blonde Hokage was standing six feet in front of him, the wind blowing his long white jacket around his ankles.

"It is my job. I have had it since I was three years old. I have had to kill my own people, and I have had to stand by and watch as others killed them as well. It is a lesson all leaders learn. You also, Minato." Fugaku looked the man in the eye with his sharingan.

"I have been on the front lines for years in this absurd secret ninja war we are fighting. I _left_ my team alone and then had to return to a casualty. I send men and women out every week on suicide missions knowing full well that their chances of returning are slim at best. Don't you dare accuse me of not understanding what that means." Minato was loosing patience. He could be easy-going, but he was also hard-headed.

"Then you understand what I must do. Know that if you get in my way… A three way battle is not effective. It is better if you stay out of it. If you join in you will be dead afterward."

"I have heard rumors about what those eyes see. That they can see into the future."

"They have seen your death." Fugaku walked past him and continued on to the police station.

Minato watched him walk away. Were the precognitive abilities of the sharingan rumor or reality? The answer was immaterial. The Fourth Hokage knew that sooner or later he would die in service, _in defense_, of his village. He hoped, that when the time came (and he hoped it was years in the future) his wife and soon-to-be-born son would understand and be able to accept that in all things they came second. Konoha came first. "Please forgive me Kushina and Naruto." He said the words quietly to himself before returning to his office.

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Sasuke was laying in his crib staring up at his older brother. He would often come by late at night and visit. Although Sasuke was still too young to really understand much, he had gotten accustomed to the older boy's visits. Although running into the room as he occasionally did was a little scary. But he always spoke kindly and stoked his hands and face, and he would fall asleep. If his mobile was off, Itachi would turn it on, and the little toys would circle around his head and the soft relaxing music would play.

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Itachi knew he shouldn't be here at this time of the night, but he wanted to see his little brother. His mother said he had saved his life and was responsible for him now. He wanted to take that seriously. But he should be outside training. Or in bed asleep. But the nightmare kept returning. The one with the bloody sword. Before Sasuke was born he was afraid of being alone in the dream. Now, he was afraid of Sasuke crying. What was going on? He was really tired. The dream had been coming at least twice a week for the last month, and even when he didn't have it he still woke up with the need to check on his little brother.

"Itachi." He heard his father's voice and jumped up from where he was leaning on the crib rail, half asleep. "Are you having nightmares? This is the fourth time this week I've seen you in here."

He thought about lying. But… "Yes. It is the same one over and over, and Sasuke is crying and wakes me up." He looked at the floor. "Do dreams come true?" He looked his father in the eye.

"Some believe the Sharingan has precognitive abilities, son, but it doesn't. Our dreams mirror our souls and show us our repressed emotions or strongest fears or desires. It is our own conscious acts that make them come true." Fugaku knew what nightmares were. "I also had a nightmare tonight. That is why I am awake. But I won't let it happen, so it won't come true. Do you understand that?" Perhaps it was a little abstract for a kid.

"Yes, I do understand. I want Sasuke to be strong. No matter what, he must be able to defend himself. That way, he won't ever cry." Itachi walked past Fugaku, who stood aside to let him pass.

A couple minutes later, after Itachi's bedroom door had closed Fugaku looked back at Sasuke. "You hear that Sasuke. You must not be weak. Be strong for your brother."

Sasuke looked over at his father and smiled as he waved his arms at him, drool leaking out the side of his mouth.

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The lake was churning like a boiling cauldron when Fugaku led his son onto the dock. The battle would take place in a few short weeks and he wanted to teach Itachi the Uchiha fire jutsu. If something happened to him in the battle, he would loose his chance. It was a jutsu unique to the clan and a sign of membership and belonging, a right of passage. More importantly it was a bond between father and son, mother and daughter. Itachi was a few years younger than usual but Fugaku had a feeling that if he could master Taijutsu, transportation jutsus, and get top marks in school at only five years old, then the fire jutsu ought to be simple.

Showing him the hand signs needed to begin the jutsu, he moved to the end of the dock. "You need to gather the chakra between your chest and your mouth, then let it out as fire." He did just that. A huge fireball burst over the lake, completely unaffected by the wind blowing against it. Itachi was amazed. He had seen much smaller versions of the jutsu. When they were traveling to the hideout last January it had been used to light their campfires, and his mother had used it to light candles around the house. But what his father just did was beyond anything Itachi had considered. "You're turn." He moved a few feet back and watched his son walk to the end of the dock.

The strong wind pulled at his clothes and tried to push him over. He knew he was small and skinny, he was repeatedly reminded of that by well-meaning adults. He had a passing thought of himself picked up and carried across the lake when a particularly strong gust made him stumble. But he didn't complain. Instead he spread his legs about a foot apart and pushed chakra to his feet to keep himself steady. He felt his father come up behind him and gather his hair up.

"The wind pulled the tie out. You don't want to burn your hair." He replaced the tie and tied the bow twice so it wouldn't slip out. "Okay, you're ready."

"Thanks." Itachi replied. He put his hands up and made the hand signs. Gathering up the chakra in his chest he let it out. The fireball that came out was as large as his fathers. "I did it!" He gave his father another big smile. The expression of happiness on his face was open and real.

Fugaku could only stare. 'Is there nothing this boy can't do?' He wondered to himself. "Oh, Itachi." He sighed. "You are my son. You are a genius. But you learn things so quickly, what am I going to do with you when I have nothing more to teach and you get bored?" What _would_ a boy like Itachi do if he was bored?

"I'll be a ninja then and go on missions. That will be exciting. I won't get bored, father." Itachi was so sure that missions would be the pinnacle of his ninja career. To be able to leave the village and steal secret documents, or assassinate evil crime lords, or escort beautiful princesses to...wherever it was beautiful princesses needed escorted to. Of course it was exciting.

Fugaku thought about that for a minute. Missions outside of the village were a good way to occupy young ninja, but as they became more skilled the missions would be boring. The secret ninja war going on right now was keeping the more troublesome ninja's busy, effectively keeping them out of trouble, but what would happen when the war ended? He already was a little afraid of his son's power, and worried about his emotional stability after he attacked and almost killed Yota. What would happen to Itachi if there was no war or high level missions to keep him occupied?

"Hmm. That remind me, you don't seem to be watching TV much anymore."

"No. I guess I hadn't noticed. I stay late at school to train, then train on the weekends. Shisui and I are always busy."

"Good. Training is a better activity for you. You have a mission to be the clan lord someday, and you must be strong. My goal is to have you graduate from the academy when you are eight years old. You will be a genin then and able to go on missions. It will expand your view of the world and teach you teamwork. It will also place you under the authority of the Hokage. You would be our link to the village." Fugaku was speaking in a pleasant tone. Itachi wasn't really used to it. He only ever heard Fugaku being stern and serious.

"I thought the Hokage was our enemy?" Itachi remembered his father's speech at the hideout when he said they were going to kill the Hokage.

"You met him at the opening ceremony. What did you think of him?"

"He was nice. But I didn't like his speech. It sounded like he was saying it was okay to be weak." Fugaku nodded his head. Itachi was perceptive, but he was also too literal. He thought about explaining the difference between being weak and needing to ask for help, but well, he had to admit that he didn't quite know the difference either. Perhaps the answer would come with maturity and experience. For both of them.

'Might as well ask.' He thought to himself. "What did you think of him when he arrested me?"

"I thought he was strong and not afraid of anything. He wasn't afraid of us at all. All those other ninja he brought with him were afraid." Itachi found he was enjoying the conversation.

"Yes he is all that. One of the best Hokage's Konoha has ever had. Perhaps the equal of the First Hokage who fought Madara at the Valley of the End almost a hundred years ago. His one fault is sticking his nose where it doesn't belong. I do not see him surviving the coming battle. He is a true leader, one who would give his life to protect those weaker than him. He is a true shinobi, one who endures. But Itachi, sometimes that isn't enough to keep you alive." He sighed and looked out across the gray lake.

"Then what is?" Itachi was serious.

"Sometimes, nothing. When it is your time to go, that's pretty much it. Some people go for the easy way out and use trickery or cowardice to escape. They end up living in the shadows fearing that they may be discovered and never stick their neck out to save friends or family. But those kinds of people, are already dead in a sense. In running from death, they forget to live."

"Like zombies?" Itachi paraphrased.

"Something like that, yeah." Fugaku smiled. "What do you say we try that fireball jutsu a few more times?"

They stayed out for another hour before it started to rain.

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**Kind of a transitional chapter, and it's shorter than usual. But there were some things that needed tied up before the battle starts. I also wanted to show that Fugaku was not always such a bad guy around his family.**

**Please review, let me know what you think, or don't think, or if you are completely confused.**

**Next time: The battle begins! (Anyone up for a game of fetch with a 100 foot fox?)**

**Put this story on your story alerts and you will get an email when I update.**


	11. Chapter 11 Battle Plan

**In the last chapter – Itachi and Shisui learn to use the transportation jutsu over short distances and the Uchiha fireball jutsu, Fugaku warns Mikoto about Kagura's frequent visits with baby Sasuke, and some of the clan members from the capital are re-called back to Konoha.**

**Thanks for the reviews everyone! I'm so happy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 11 – Battle Plan**

"Due to the impending attack, you two will be withdrawing from the Academy for a few weeks." It was a dark evening in the middle of October. Fugaku had requested Itachi, Mikoto, Shisui, and Shisui's parents present themselves at 11pm in his meeting room. The room was dark, except for two candles burning on either side of where Fugaku and Mikoto sat, side by side. Facing them were Itachi, and behind him sat Kisa, Toshiro and Shisui. After a busy day at the police station and training it was the only time he could schedule a meeting. Besides, he wanted to keep this conversation "under the radar", so to speak. It wasn't that it was a secret, but still…

Fugaku saw the disappointment on the boy's faces. "I'm sorry, but if the attack starts while you are in school you would be separated from your clan, and when the rest of the students realize it is Uchiha behind it you will be singled out and possibly injured. That would be unacceptable. Especially if I had a way to prevent it. Both of you are very talented, geniuses really. You have the drive to train on your own without guidance. Shisui, you have recently learned the Katon fire jutsu?"

Shisui nodded his head. "Yes, last week."

"Good. Then both boys are full members of the clan. You must take your responsibilities seriously. The clan is our life, our reason for existing. You are the next generation of the clan and you must learn all you can so you can carry on our traditions to your children. I am pulling Okimi off guard duty. It has been determined that Orochimaru has left the area, for a while at least. However, until further notice I still do not want you leaving the compound without an adult escort." He stopped talking and it was quiet for a minute. "When the battle begins, you will not participate, no matter how tempted you are, for whatever reason. You are not skilled enough yet and would get in the way, or be injured, or even die. You will stay with your mothers and follow their orders.

"After the battle I will let you know when you may return to the Academy. That is all for now, you may leave." Fugaku bowed his head, as Itachi, Shisui, Toshiro and Kisa bowed to him and left the room.

Itachi saw the three guests to the front door. He was disappointed about having to miss school and he could see on Shisui's face that he was too.

"I'll come by after lunch, and we can train by the lake, okay Itachi?" Shisui gave his cousin a small smile.

"Yeah, that sounds good. I'll see you then." He looked up at Toshiro and Kisa who were giving polite smiles. "Thank-you for coming, even though it is late." He bowed to them and they bowed back.

"It was no problem. Toshiro only got home 30 minutes ago anyway. Everyone is very busy. Good night Itachi." Kisa answered in a soft voice.

After they left Itachi walked down the hall to his bedroom. He stopped at his door, and he could hear his parents talking in the meeting room. They seemed to be whispering a lot lately. He entered his room and shut the door.

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A couple hours' later people started to come to the house. Mikoto lead them to Fugaku's meeting room, where they sat on mats facing their clan lord. No one spoke and everyone had their sharingan on. The room was dark, the only illumination came from a street lamp that filtered through the paper in the sliding door. There were no windows. In all, six men and four women were gathered.

When Fugaku spoke, it was in a low voice. "Thank-you for coming, as ordered. Tonight I will inform you of your part in the coming battle. First, you will notice that only ten of the team leaders are present. There is a reason for that, and you are not going to like it. The person we will be fighting is Madara Uchiha." He paused as gasps came from some of those gathered. "We will not be attacking the Hokage as I have previously stated. Madara is present and has been in and out of the village for the past year and a half. He walks a path of his own creation, one he created for all Uchiha. But we cannot walk that same path and remain within Konoha. That path has ramifications that would affect the whole of the ninja world. The First Hokage fought him over the ideals with which Konoha would be lead. The Valley of the End is the scar that was cut into the earth during their fight. His descendents created the Police Force to protect Konoha and its will of fire. Madara's path was recognized as a goal, but was never meant to be followed. Now he is back. I am not sure exactly how he accomplished it. I have a few ideas, but they are ultimately meaningless. The fact is, he is here and we must stop him."

The silence that fell in the room as he spoke was full of dread. Every eye in the room was focused on Fugaku. A man not of Uchiha blood would have been cringing in his seat, but the clan lord barely noticed. "I have divided the teams up into three lists. The 'A' list consists of the teams you are leading. You will follow me unconditionally to stop Madara. The 'C' list consists of the teams that will, when given a choice, follow Madara. The 'B' list consists of the teams that would like to follow Madara, but given the right conditions will follow me instead. Each list also contains the names of the rest of the clan members. The lists are secret, but you will be made aware of the teams on all three lists. You are not, under any circumstances, to reveal the contents of the lists in anyway, nor are you to discuss the lists again after you leave this room." He passed the three team lists around. He kept the three civilian lists separate. He didn't want them to see too much.

"I do not know exactly when Madara will attack, but I am absolutely positive it will be in the next few days. He plans on using us, arrogantly believing that most of us will follow him, so I am watching carefully to see when he makes his move. The teams on List C will no doubt mobilize right before or during the onset of the attack so watch your backs. The Hokage has been watching me closely since releasing me from prison. He will mobilize minutes after I do. This is not something I wanted to happen. There is no way Madara is going to let that man live. I have warned him, the best I can, to keep out and let us handle this but he refuses. Therefore I will tell you outright that our job is not to protect the Hokage, if he dies, then so be it. Our sole job is fighting Madara Uchiha. We must protect Konoha. We must protect our home. As long as Konoha perseveres, it can always find quality Kages. If Madara wins, and Uchiha walk his path once more, then Konoha will shrivel and die. However, having Konoha ninjas at our backs will be helpful. There is an outside chance he will have some kind of reinforcements – mercenaries to help him." Some of the gathered ninja smiled.

"Toshiro?" Fugaku was a little confused about why his words would make anyone smile.

"We will follow you, Lord Fugaku. The path is not one we wish to walk, as you correctly perceived. Konoha is our home, and its citizens our extended family. The Police Station is our sworn duty, one we have and will continue to defend with our lives." He bent forward and touched his head to the floor. "We serve you, Lord Fugaku." The rest of the ninja's in the room followed his actions.

"As it should be." Fugaku closed his eyes and smiled and he let out a sigh. Mikoto had told him he would feel better after talking to them, and she was right.

After the meeting the attendees used the transportation jutsu to exit the clan lord's house. Fugaku remained in his meeting room until dawn, sitting and thinking. Sometime around 5am he heard Itachi leave his room, then return about thirty minutes later. Probably checking on Sasuke again.

"Mikoto," Fugaku walked in and closed the door to their bedroom sometime after 8am. "Has Itachi ever slept the entire night through?"

"No. He has had bouts of insomnia since he was about two years old. When it flares up he tends to sleep about four to six hours every night, but it has gotten worse in the last year." She looked down at her hands as she spoke.

"Is there something that can be done about that? Sleep deprivation for someone like Itachi can't be good. Plus, he's having nightmares."

"I know. Kagura didn't want to give him any drugs because of his small size, and before starting school I just made him take naps. Perhaps when all this blows over the nightmares will end. He's off school right now, so I'll see if I can get him to take a nap again in the afternoon." Truthfully, Mikoto rarely noticed that Itachi was sleepy. She suspected he may just be a person who didn't need eight to ten hours of sleep at night. But Kagura said… She thought about Fugaku's warning. "If he continues to loose sleep after all this ends, I'll take him to a different doctor."

Fugaku caught the "different doctor" comment and quickly turned his head to face Mikoto, but she was still looking at her hands in her lap. "Hmm. I never noticed until tonight."

"He's a quiet boy, keeps to himself. If…when he wakes up he either meditates or he trains. He also likes to walk down to the lake and sit. It's hard to think of him as a five-year-old boy. He acts like an old man sometimes. But he never makes any noise." There was a high-pitched screech from down the hall followed by loud crying and Mikoto gave a short laugh. "Sasuke on the other hand, makes a lot of noise."

Fugaku laughed out loud for the first time in weeks. "Yes, Sasuke is a fine boy. I'm glad he's ours."

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Kagura walked slowly to the clan lord's house. She had taken the day off from work and wanted to see Sasuke. This would be the last day she would ever spend with him. She was sure he was her grandson. He was Obito's child. Her husband, Kentaro, and even Madara himself had told her she was wrong. Madara swore he was not inhabiting Obito's dead body, but if that was true why did she see Obito sometimes when she looked at him? She knew what she saw. A teenage boy with messy hair and a big grin. Madara would just sigh when she argued with him. Also, he had died almost a century ago. How could he exist now except through some kind of forbidden jutsu? Rumors of jutsus that moved souls from body to body were rampant. "Yes, Sasuke is my grandson. I know he is."

Mikoto invited her into the house a few minutes later. She was about to make lunch and wanted Kagura to join them. "We are all in the kitchen. Why don't you sit down and I'll pour you some tea?"

"Thank-you. I could use some tea right now." She looked around as they walked down the hall. "Where are the cats?"

"Oh, they spend the daytime out in the woods stalking innocent mice." Mikoto gave a short laugh. The cats were only really needed at night when everyone was asleep.

They reached the kitchen and Kagura sat next to Sasuke. He was wearing a light blue short-sleeve shirt and black pants with light blue socks. Kagura smiled. They were some of the clothes she had bought for him. She grabbed a foot and swung it back and forth a couple times. "How is baby Sasuke today?" He ginned and drooled at her. Itachi handed her a clean cloth and she wiped his face.

"He does that a lot." Itachi said distractedly.

"You seem a little down Itachi." She paused, then moved her gaze from Sasuke to Itachi. "Why aren't you in school today? Are you sick?" She was suddenly very worried. He couldn't get sick, not now.

Mikoto put a soup tureen on the table and sat down on the other side of Sasuke. "No, he's not sick. A little tired maybe." She didn't want to tell Kagura that he had been pulled out of school.

Itachi sensed his mother was uncomfortable with the question. "Shisui and I got suspended for fighting with Yota's gang. It was unprovoked. The teacher told us to apologize, but we refused so the headmaster suspended us for a month." He looked Kagura straight in the eye as he spoke.

"And you are tired, because?" She knew that the school had a hard line on fights that occurred outside of training exercises. Itachi's fight last summer with Yota was well known, as was the latter's reputation as a bully.

"Father lectured Shisui and me late last night." As he said this he looked down at his bowl with what he hoped was a sad face. Mikoto also looked down with a sad face, but inside she was beaming with pride at her son's insightfulness.

"And he is still not sleeping through the night." Mikoto added. She was a little surprised that Kagura asked why he was loosing sleep. Had she forgotten about his insomnia?

"Still, huh?" She ate a few spoonfuls of the soup. "Mikoto, there is a sleep specialist at the hospital. Make an appointment for Itachi and take him in. Itachi, please cooperate with the doctor and tell him anything he asks, truthfully. Not getting enough sleep will affect your ability to think in stressful situations and make you more susceptible to illness." She sighed. "I'm sorry Itachi. It's my fault. I thought you would grow out of it."

Mikoto smiled. "Well, before starting school he just took naps, but now it's a little harder to do that. I'll make the appointment the next time I'm out shopping." She didn't ask why Kagura didn't offer to make the appointment for them, as she usually did. A few days later, when she thought back to that lunch, she wished she had of noticed it.

Kagura reached over to the tureen and lifted the ladle, stirring the contents as she dropped a powder into the large bowl. She scooped another serving into their three bowls as Mikoto was distracted with Sasuke and Itachi searched the floor next to his cushion for the Taijutsu book he was reading earlier.

Itachi and Mikoto spooned the tainted soup into their mouths. Itachi was the first to feel the effects, after only two spoonfuls. He put his head on his hand and looked at his bowl. He tried to remember what he had been searching the floor for, and why was he was sitting at the table if he was supposed to be in the meeting room fighting with Yota? He put his head down on the table.

Mikoto had eaten about four spoonfuls of the soup when she noticed Itachi drop down onto the table, his eyes glazed over for a moment before closing. She knew at that moment they had been drugged. "Kagura…why…" It was all she could say before her head hit the table as well. She saw Kagura's mouth moving, and, were those tears coming out of her eyes? As her eyelids closed she saw Sasuke being lifted out of his highchair.

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"Itachi? Itachi?" Shisui stood at the front door three hours later and called for his cousin. He was sure he was home, since they were planning on training this afternoon. No one answered when he called. He opened the door and stepped into the entry way and called again. The headman's house was huge and it was possible Itachi and his mother couldn't hear him. He smelled soup and walked to the kitchen, calling out again for his cousin. Something was strange. If they weren't home, why was the front door unlocked? He expected to see Itachi and Mikoto eating lunch, albeit a few hours later than usual, but what he did see shocked him so bad he backed up into the wall and slid down onto his rear end.

Mikoto was slung over the table, her hand reaching for Itachi, who had has head on the table and his arms hanging limply by his side. "They're dead! Are they dead?" Shisui panicked. All he could do was stare at them for several minutes. He finally picked himself up and moved closer to look at them. He noticed that they were both breathing. He shook them both, calling out their names loudly, but they didn't respond. It was then that he noticed Sasuke wasn't in his highchair. He ran down the hall looking in several rooms for the baby. "He's not here!" He practically yelled the words.

Running out of the house he darted off in the direction of his own home, only to be grabbed roughly by Fugaku.

"What's the hurry, kid?" He sensed something was wrong when he saw the boy running toward him with tears in his eyes.

"Oh Lord Fugaku! Something is wrong with Itachi and Lady Mikoto! I can't wake them up and Sasuke is missing! I searched the entire house for him and I can't find him!" The boy was practically yelling, and he was visibly shaking.

"You couldn't wake them up?" It couldn't be…

"Yes! They were breathing, but I think they must have been drugged!"

"You are right, they were drugged. Go get your father, he's at your house. Tell him to come to me now." He watched for a second as Shisui ran off at top speed noticing at the back of his mind that the boy was much faster than a normal eight year old should be. He took off running to his own house.

"Father! Father!" Shisui ran into the house and into the living room without taking his shoes off. Toshiro stood up quickly. He was alarmed, never having seen his son act like this. "Fugaku wants you at his house right now. Mikoto and Itachi were drugged and Sasuke is missing." Toshiro took off without saying anything.

"What did you say?" Kisa ran into the living room from the kitchen, only to see her son collapsed on the floor, sobbing.

Fugaku walked into the kitchen and picked up Itachi. Holding the boy in his arms he sent his chakra through the small body. He wasn't very skilled at medical ninjutsu but he did have some field training. "It is poison, and it's beginning to wear off." As he entered the hallway Toshiro ran into the house. He stopped and saw Fugaku holding Itachi. He quickly walked up to them and put his hand on the boys face.

"This is unforgivable." The words Toshiro spoke were filled with dark malice. "I take it this was Kagura's doing?"

"Yeah. It is. I really hope I am the one to find her, because I want to rip her into a million pieces."

"Do you want me to take him so you can get Mikoto?"

"Sure." He put Itachi in Toshiro's arms. Toshiro walked down to Itachi's room and laid him in his bed. The boy was cold and starting to shiver. He went over to the dresser and pulled out some socks and covered the boy's feet, then found a knit hat in the same drawer and put it over his head. He pulled up the blankets and tucked them around the small boy before walking back into the hall.

"They should be waking up soon." Fugaku said as he walked out of his bedroom.

"Itachi has started shivering. He may be suffering from an overdose, or he may have just gotten cold. Kisa should be here in a few minutes…" Toshiro turned his head as he heard a sound come from the entryway.

"I'm here now. I had to dig out my poison scrolls." Shisui was standing next to her holding a medium-sized box. His face was now set in determination instead of panic.

In all the haste Fugaku had forgotten that Kisa was a poison specialist. "Good. Have a look at Itachi first, he may be having side-effects. Within the next thirty minutes evacuate to the emergency shelter. I will send someone to help since Mikoto and Itachi probably won't be able to move very well for a few hours."

"Right away." Kisa spoke as she followed Shisui into Itachi's bedroom.

"Toshiro, Madara has made the first move. It is time for us to mobilize." Toshiro ran out the front door. Fugaku checked on Itachi.

"He was given too much of the drug." Kisa told him. "It has dropped his body temperature. I don't expect him to wake up for two or three hours. If we are evacuating I also don't have time to extract the poison. It won't harm him, so it's probably best to let his system work it out. The only danger is hypothermia, but since we are with him we won't let that happen." There was a sound from down the hall. It came again, only louder.

"Itachi!" Mikoto was awake. Fugaku and Kisa ran to her room.

"Fugaku! Where is Itachi? Is he okay? He passed out. Kagura drugged the soup. Oh God I didn't think she would go that far! Where is Sasuke?" She was rambling as tears streamed down her face. Kisa took her hand and applied her chakra to check her condition.

"Mikoto, calm down, and I'll answer you."

"I won't calm down!" She practically screeched the words. "Where are my sons!" She activated her Sharingan and emitted chakra with such murderous intent that both Fugaku and Kisa backed away from her.

Fugaku answered her, activating his own Sharingan. "Itachi is in the other room, unconscious. He is suffering from an overdose, but will be fine." He swallowed once, then grabbed Kisa's arm and pulled her behind him before he spoke the next words. "Sasuke is missing. I don't know where he is." Instantly Mikoto was out of bed and ready to attack. He grabbed his wife, knocked her to the ground and pinned her so she couldn't move. "You will calm down, or I will render you unconscious. We are mobilizing right now. Sasuke is our first priority."

"You know what he is going to use the boy for!" Mikoto spat the words out at him.

"Yes I do. Finding him is more important now that finding Madara." He released her and she sat up. "I need to go now. Kisa will fill you in." He turned around and started to walk out of the room.

"Bring him back alive, Fugaku." There was a veiled threat in the words Mikoto spoke to him. Fugaku paused for a minute, looking into Kisa's face. She had masked her emotions and for some reason, her chakra.

"I may not be able to do that, Mikoto." He left the room and hardened his heart as he heard the sobs coming down the hall.

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When Fugaku stepped outside of his house the teams in lists A and B were assembled. The team leader was in front with the members standing behind him or her. As expected, the list C teams were no where to be found. He felt a chakra source appear and disappear. 'That would be Anbu. Apparently the Hokage told them to let me know when they realized I was assembling.' He thought to himself, and then mentally calculated how long it would take for the Hokage's forces to assemble at the front gate.

"The following teams will remain in the compound and assist with the evacuation of the civilians." He named off the teams on list B. "The rest of you, follow me to the Konoha gates." They ran off to the gates, with Fugaku leading the way. As they exited the Uchiha compound the people on the roads ran out of the way and some ran inside of buildings, fearing that something was up. As they approached the front gate they found it closed.

"What is the meaning of this? Open the gate or I'll open it for you!" Fugaku yelled at the guards.

"You can open the gates now." The Hokage jumped down from a building and stood facing Fugaku. "I have mobilized the ninja and Anbu divisions. Do you know where he is?"

"Where who is?" Hiashi Hyuuga walked up and stood next to the two men. He had agreed to allow his clan to be used to defend Konoha at the urging of the Hokage, but he still didn't know exactly what was going on. "Tell me, or we are pulling out."

"Neither of you need to be here. Minato, you know he will not let you live through this. Go home." Fugaku was standing with his sharingan activated.

"I will do no such thing. You are as much a part of this village as everyone else, and I will stand here in defense of my citizens." Minato spoke loudly and with much emotion.

Fugaku was taken aback. It was not what he expected the Fourth Hokage to say to him. He bowed his head. "So be it." He answered Hiashi's question. "I do not know how he accomplished it, but Madara Uchiha has returned from the dead. He has been in and out of the village for the past year and a half preparing for some kind of offensive. I did not know what exactly his goal was. I suspected it had something to do with the path he and the First Hokage fought over at the Valley of the End. But now I realize it may be something else." He sighed without meaning to. "He kidnapped my infant son a few hours ago. We only found out a short while ago. He is going to use the boy to…"

"Stop. There is no need to continue." Minato did not want the people assembled around him to hear the next part. He raised his voice and spoke to someone standing behind him. "Sound the evacuation order! Get all the civilians into the shelters! Now!" Several people ran off, followed closely by about forty ninja's who spread themselves throughout the village.

Hiashi repeated the command to evacuate the Hyuuga compound to a man standing next to him. "How are we going to stop this man? He was all-powerful back when the First fought him."

"We need to find where he is keeping Sasuke. My son." He clarified when Hiashi failed to recognize the name. "He needs the boy. If we can get him away then his plan is ruined. I am thinking he will withdraw if that happens."

"Why would you think that?"

"We can't discuss it here." Minato interrupted. "He probably has the boy in one of Orochimaru's abandoned laboratories. I'll send people out to search the known locations. You two send your people out to accompany my teams. Your doujutsus will speed up the search." They broke up and separated their teams and within fifteen minutes the area within a mile radius around Konoha was being searched.

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After drugging Itachi and Mikoto, Kagura picked up Sasuke and took him to his nursery. Tears were falling from her eyes. She couldn't get the look of betrayal Mikoto had given her out of her mind. "I have to do this Sasuke. You understand, don't you? I have to protect my Obito. I would do anything to protect him, wouldn't I?" She pulled a warm jacket with a hood over Sasuke and put a pair of lace up shoes on his feet. She folded the coat's mittens over his hands, then wrapped him in a blanket. She checked his diaper bag to make sure it had diapers, food, water and formula. She then stuffed extra clothing in the bag.

Shouldering the diaper bag she looked around to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything. "Don't worry, Sasuke, you will be well looked after. I promise." She used the transportation jutsu to disappear and re-appear outside the gates. She walked northeast of the village and waited.

"Here already, Kagura?" Kentaro spoke as he and Madara walked up to her.

"There were no problems. I drugged the soup and they ate it right away."

"They?" Madara had expected only Mikoto to be home.

"Itachi was also there. He said he was suspended from school for fighting."

Madara smirked. "Likely, Fugaku has pulled the boys out of school to keep them under protection when we attack. He is definitely proving to be smarter than I originally thought."

"Can we get inside now? I don't want the baby out in the weather for very long." Kagura adjusted her arms. Sasuke was awake and looking persistently at Madara's orange and black mask.

Kentaro gave a small laugh. "I think he likes your mask, Lord Madara."

"Well, he has good taste. Follow me and you can start setting up for later." He walked back into the forest with Kagura following him and Kentaro bringing up the rear.

They approached a staircase that was cut into the ground. At the bottom of the stairs was a set of double doors with white snakes carved into the wood. "This was originally one of Orochimaru's labs. There is a genjutsu cast in the area that makes people walk by it without noticing. As long as the ninja's surrounding the area are here the genjutsu will remain and you will be safe." Madara walked down the stairs and let them into the chamber. It was already lit and a furnace was burning in the corner. The room was large, but the furnace had heated it well. It was still a little colder than room temperature, but Kagura was sure it would be good enough for Sasuke.

In the center of the room a seal had been drawn on the floor. A large pillow had been placed in the center of the seal. Kagura walked over to it and laid Sasuke down. He started fussing so she sat next to him and started talking to him softly. He soon went to sleep.

Madara watched Kagura with Sasuke. She did have a way with children. Getting him to quiet down that quickly. He wanted to walk over and see the boy more closely, but he knew that wouldn't help. He sighed. "Kentaro. You know what to do." Madara started walking out of the chamber when Kagura ran to catch up with him.

"Lord Madara. Please. I… Can I see Obito's face, just one more time?" She caught a hold on his arm. He placed a hand on her shoulder and Kentaro walked over and stopped three feet behind her.

"Kagura. I am not inhabiting Obito's body. I'm sorry, but your boy is gone. Dead." She let go of his arm and turned around.

"I understand. That's okay." She turned back around to face Madara and put on a big smile. "Sasuke looks just like Obito did when he was a baby. I looked through the pictures. It's amazing. You should be very proud of him. He will help us restore the clan to its rightful path. Obito believed in the path. He was a timid boy, but his heart was in the right place. Goodbye, Lord Madara, please put Uchiha back on the right path and restore the power of the Sharingan." She turned around and walked back to Sasuke. Madara watched her for a couple minutes, then left the chamber.

The masked man walked into a clearing a half mile from the chamber. There was a seal drawn on the ground and an unconscious elderly man was tied up in the center. He sat down on a stump and looked at the scene in front of him. Kagura was half insane. There was no way she would be able to do the ceremony. Kentaro would do it. He would kill Kagura, then perform the ceremony. There was no way around it. "Damnit!" He yelled out to the empty air.

"Cursing already, and it hasn't even started yet." He looked at the man standing in front of him. Or rather, the projected image of a man.

"What do you want?" Madara was more than a little pissed.

"Just checking in. I also have a huge stake in what goes on here tonight. You can't fault me for protecting my interests." The man's ringed eyes blazed powerfully at Madara's sharingan.

"Is that what you call it? I have an idea for you, why don't you follow the orders I gave you earlier and fight Sasori of the Red Sands? Or is it too much for you?" Madara stood up and looked at the image in front of him.

"I'm getting ready to do just that right now. He should be here in a few minutes. My partner is on her way and will meet you at the pre-arranged spot to accept custody of the baby. Don't be late. She's already pissed off at having to babysit, let's not make things worse." He paused and looked to the right, then chuckled. "Well, he's here. Look's like it's time for me to play. Don't worry, I won't kill him. Much." He disappeared. Madara shook his head. The bargain with the man was necessary, but they didn't like each other. And he didn't like having to give Sasuke to the man's partner. He would have preferred to return the baby to Mikoto. _They_ didn't like that idea. _They_ wanted the boy under their control. He would humor them, but he also planned on keeping a close eye them.

"It's almost time." His thoughts returned to Kagura. He had to harden his heart. Her mental condition completely stemmed from the Uchiha's problems with having children. He would fix that. When the true power of the Sharingan was achieved the clan would be re-born. There would be many children. He hoped Kagura would be re-incarnated back into the clan. Then she would be happy. He wanted her to be happy. She had been very important to him once.

"What?" He suddenly realized what he was thinking. "I am Madara Uchiha." He spoke firmly. "Go to sleep. Do not bother me again." He felt a sharp pain in his head. He yelled "I said _go to sleep_!" He got up and walked to the outside of the seal.

Time passed and the sun began to set. He had heard ninjas roaming around the area a few time in the last couple hours, but due to the Genjutsu they never saw him, or the underground chamber. As the sun finally fell below the horizon Madara smiled beneath his mask as he looked at the unconscious man in front of him.

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After the teams set out to search for the underground laboratory Madara was suspected of using, Minato guided Fugaku and Hiashi outside the gate to a spot where they could be alone. "Fugaku. Tell me what is going on. It appears that my guesses have been wrong."

"My guesses were wrong, too." Fugaku admitted. "He has kidnapped my son. There is only one use for an infant. To create a Jinchuuriki for a demon. Specifically, the Kyuubi. He will keep the boy, then release the demon again at a future date when he has more control of it." Minato and Hiashi blinked at him in shock.

"Are you sure of this?" Hiashi said quietly.

"Very sure." He thought back to the elder council's insistence that a child be born by a specific time. He should have seen it back then.

"So what do we do?" Hiashi wasn't happy about this. The Uchiha clan was nothing but trouble in his book. They had no control over their members. No discipline.

"We have several options. The first one would be the best. That is to disrupt the sealing ceremony. If the demon is caught between its current host and its new host it will die. It is possible that this will break Madara's hold on this world and he could also die again."

"Isn't that the same as releasing it? How would that kill it?"

"Because it is _not_ being released. It is being pulled from a host and pushed into a new host. The restrictions on the seal are very strict and breaking it will result in death. Madara is closely connected to the Kyuubi, that was known to the First when they fought all those years ago. Killing the Kyuubi might, in my opinion, kill Madara."

Minato spoke up "There is only a slim chance of us finding them."

Fugaku sighed. He knew that was true. "The alternative that will work, beyond any doubt is to allow the ceremony to complete then steal Sasuke back. I will then kill the boy. Once the Jinchuuriki dies, the demon also dies. This will weaken Madara – hopefully he would also die."

Hiashi couldn't believe what he just heard. "You would sacrifice your own son?"

"I don't want to! If they can find Sasuke before the ceremony then we can disrupt it. But as Minato has said, the chances of that are so slim… An Uchiha body used as a Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi would be nearly as powerful as Madara himself. Perhaps more powerful. We can't allow that kind of power to be released into the world again." He trailed off. Minato had been very quiet, except for one statement. Fugaku continued "There is no one in this village powerful enough to stand against him. Even if the Third and Fourth combined their powers it would not be enough. Even the three great Sannin would be defeated. The Kyuubi must be eliminated to kill him completely. And even so, that is still just a theory of mine."

"What was your original plan then, if you knew you couldn't kill him?" Hiashi was getting agitated. He was afraid that the second option would be their only choice.

"Put up a united front of Uchiha against him. The best we could do would be to drive him away. Perhaps in the confrontation we could learn something about him. He is very loyal to the clan and very concerned with its welfare."

"In other words, you were going to wing it and see what happens?" Hiashi looked down. "I guess with someone like Madara, there isn't much else you could do. So I take it there is something wrong with the current Jinchuuriki holding the Kyuubi?"

"Good question. I suppose he must be very old by now. Perhaps Madara is moving the Kyuubi to a younger body because the current Jinchuuriki is dying. I wish I had thought to check up on him earlier. He hasn't lived in Konoha for decades, so it's kind of out of site out of mind. Not that it's an excuse, of course." Fugaku had been mentally kicking himself over this in the two hours since he discovered Sasuke was missing. It was so obvious it was pathetic. He was supposed to be the clan lord and the chief of police. An oversight this large… how could it have happened? Kentaro was by his side most of the time. He hated to think it, but perhaps he was under the traitors influence more than he thought he was. His heart hardened when he thought of Kentaro. He now hated the man with every fiber of his being. If he had to kill Sasuke, then Kentaro's death would be painful and last over several days.

"So all we have are those two options." Out of habit, Hiashi scanned the area around where they were standing. He could sense the change in Fugaku's demeanor and correctly guessed what was going on in his mind. The painful death of whoever was responsible for this. 'There must have been a traitor or traitors positioned very close to Fugaku for this to happen.' He thought to himself.

"No." Minato finally spoke up. His voice was quiet, but his tone was confident. "There is a third option." He smiled when the two men in front of him looked up at him with identical expressions of curiosity. He thought about his wife. She had gone into labor a few hours ago and the baby was expected in a couple or more hours. She should have been evacuated to a secure area by now. "I will return in an hour to fill you in on the plan. In the meantime, I want you two to join in the search. We must find Sasuke."

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**Please review! Anonymous reviews are accepted.**

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**Next Time: "Chapter 12 – Sasuke and Naruto" What is the link between these two boys? The Fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze, makes a decision he hopes will save Konoha and Sasuke. How will Kushina take it? Also, Fugaku is attacked and the Giant Monster Battle of the Summons begins!**


	12. Chapter 12 Sasuke and Naruto

**Last time Itachi and Shisui were disappointed to learn they would be withdrawing from the Academy until the attack ends. We also learned about the different lists Fugaku drafted, as well as his plans for confronting Madara. Kagura poisoned Mikoto and Itachi and kidnapped Sasuke, giving Shisui a shock when he discovered their unconscious bodies in the kitchen. Fugaku mobilized the clan only to be met at the gates by Minato and the Konoha ninja, and the Hyuuga clan who want to help him.**

**Please review. Anonymous reviews are accepted.**

**Thanks for the reviews and the fav's, and alerts, and even for just clicking the link and reading a few lines! I have over 1400 hits, which, even if you divide that by 3 or 4 for duplicates is still impressive (to me anyway) ^-^**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 12 – Sasuke and Naruto**

Minato made his way back to the Hokage tower. He made it in only a couple minutes due to his expert use of the transportation jutsu. Walking into the building he immediately made his way to the secret entrance into the tunnels. The ninjas guarding the hallway snapped to attention when he approached them.

"Is Kushina safe?" The question was more of an order.

"Yes. Her and two doctors and several ninja guards are in the tunnels." One of the ninja replied emotionlessly as a second ninja opened the seals to let the Fourth inside. After he passed through the seals were re-applied. When he needed out again a ninja on the other side would open the seal.

He jogged through the tunnel for about five minutes before finding the chamber Kushina had been taken to. It was small, about 20 feet by 30 feet. The room was brightly lit with Fluorescent fixtures that hung from the ceiling. It looked like an old fashioned operating room with stainless steel sinks, tables, and cabinets. The floor, ceiling and walls were covered in white ceramic tiles. It was very sanitary looking. Not even close to the welcoming and comfortable maternity ward she had been in only hours before. Yet, she was smiling and talking pleasantly with the two doctors.

"Kushina." He couldn't think of anything else to say. She instantly knew something was wrong when she looked at him. She was like that, able to read a person's inner feelings, to see the truth behind them. She wore her heart on her sleeve – it was unusual for a ninja but for her it worked.

Minato remembered when he had first met her, how it had taken maybe three minutes to fall in love with the little tom-boy refugee from the decimated Whirlpool country. When they were Genin her people had shown up at the gates of Konoha looking the worse for wear. She had been placed on a Genin team that his own Genin team often shared missions with. He had spent a lot of energy in his attempts to win her over in the following years, only to find out when they were in their late teens that she had always liked him and had been teasing and flirting with him all those years. For some reason that didn't upset him at all. In fact, he was walking on air for the next month. After which he promptly proposed. She accepted. Their parents said they were too young to get married and told them to wait two years. Well, that didn't bother him either. He still had her, no matter what. But still, they only waited one year and married when they were eighteen. That was ten years ago. And now their first child was about to be born.

"What's wrong, Minato?" She was laying on a hospital bed with the back lifted up a little bit.

"How are you doing?" He walked over and took her hand.

"We're fine." She patted her stomach. "Naruto doesn't seem to be in any hurry to come out though. I guess he wants to sleep in. Lazy like his mother, I guess." She gave a small laugh and Minato had to smile. The image of a baby sleeping in on the day it was supposed to be born was…funny. He bent over and kissed her, breaking away when a contraction made her gasp.

"Kushina, I must do something to save the village. It will involve Naruto. This is going to be hard to say, so please don't interrupt until I am finished."

"Would you like us to leave?" One of the doctors asked quietly, not wanting to interrupt.

"No. That's okay. Please stay." He smiled at the two doctors and three ninja's gathered in the room. The ninja's looked at each other and nodded. Minato realized he didn't know them, but then there were a lot of ninja's he didn't know.

"The village is in danger from a man who lived almost eighty years ago. Madara Uchiha. He was extremely powerful and when he and the First fought the result was the decimation you now see at the Valley of the End. We don't know how, but he is still alive. Supposedly he had died in that battle, and even if he didn't, he should be a very old man. He has kidnapped an Uchiha baby." Kushina gasped at this news and grabbed her husband's hand. "He is going to seal the Kyuubi into the boy to create a Jinchuuriki. I cannot allow that to happen. If the Kyuubi is sealed inside an Uchiha body it will give him strength akin to Madara. If Madara then had control over the boy, raises him with his ideals, Konoha, Fire Country, perhaps the whole world will be in danger." He paused and took a deep breath. Looking into his wife's eyes he saw the beginning of tears.

"If, instead, I seal the Kyuubi in Naruto the power will be contained and kept within Konoha. He can be raised here, you will be with him and he will be happy." He took another deep breath.

"Kushina. The sealing will kill me. I'm sorry." He looked at Kushina as her face broke and the tears ran down her face as another contraction hit. She forced out a laugh.

"I guess Naruto's ready for his first mission. The contractions are coming sooner. Minato, don't worry about us. I knew this day would come. I knew what your job would entail when you accepted it. And Naruto…I will be there with him to tell him about you. You'll be his hero, I know it. Ahh!" Another contraction. "But I will curse Madara Uchiha for all eternity."

"Thank-you, Kushina. If I am allowed, I will do all I can from the other side to help." He kissed her again. "Doctor, how long until she gives birth?"

One of the doctors rushed over. "It's still about two or three hours away…Would a cesarean be in order here?"

"Yes." Kushina answered before Minato could open his mouth. The doctor nodded to the other doctor who walked over to some equipment on a metal table.

"I'll be back in an hour. I need to write a letter to Jiraiya. I have some important things to tell him, both as a Sannin and Naruto's godfather. And I need to go back out and check and see if the Uchiha baby has been located."

"We'll be waiting for you." She smiled as he left the room. She was surprised with herself. For some reason, after everything he said, she couldn't help but feel proud of him. But she also felt sad. 'I will cry later. Right now, I don't want his last memories to be of me crying.' She thought to herself.

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Back in his office he quickly pulled out a piece of paper and wrote his old sensei a letter. He gave a quick overview of the sealing procedure he would be using, a quick description of the situation with Madara, Fugaku and Sasuke and finally, a short, but heartfelt goodbye. Folding it, he placed it on his desk where it would be easily found.

Grabbing a second piece of paper he wrote a letter to the Third. The old man was currently with an Anbu detachment in the Stone country. He briefly wondered if Madara had lured the old man out of the country so he wouldn't have to deal with two Kage level ninjas. Well, that was for Sarutobi to figure out later. Right now… he left instruction for Naruto's care. Indicating that he wanted no one to know the boy would be a jinchuuriki so he could have a normal life. It was probably a vain request, but he had to try.

He left the office for the last time without looking back.

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Fugaku was jumping through the trees northwest of the village. The map of Orochimaru's laboratories showed nothing in this area, so he decided that since the rest of the ninja teams were looking at known locations he would check the unknown one himself. Hiashi had headed to the northeast.

Fighting his way through the autumn foliage he scanned the area with his Sharingan and kept his senses attuned for anything unusual. It didn't take long to find it. Directly in front of him were two ninja teams of…

"Rain ninja." He said the words out loud. He couldn't believe it. Why would ninja from the village hidden in the Rain be here? It was a weak and downtrodden country, overrun continuously by the Wind, Stone and Fire countries. The Rain village was held fast under the iron grip of the despot Hanzou. Poverty was the norm in that land and the ninja were known to be ruthless, but badly trained. Why would Madara use them, of all people? Hanzou was ridiculously strong, but his people didn't measure up to the legend. And he seemed to like it that way. Even when rumors of rebellion reached the ears of Konoha it was always with a tone of regret. No one believed the self-proclaimed freedom fighters would overthrow their dictator.

Silently dropping to the ground Fugaku strode into the clearing and confronted the eight ninja. "Good evening gentlemen, and ladies." He added the last bit after the two women turned around and gave him a dirty look. They were all dressed alike in white, one-piece body suits and wearing breathing masks. No doubt they were carrying copious amounts of poison as well. "Let me welcome you to Konoha. I believe you are aware of Madara's location. Tell me where it is and I'll let you go."

The eight ninja rushed him without a word of warning. Fugaku performed a body flicker jutsu that acted as a quick transportation jutsu – moving him a few feet at a time in quick succession. The Rain ninja saw him appearing in many different areas so quickly that it almost looked like he was using clones. They formed two groups and looked for an opening. Fugaku stopped and quickly performed a series of hand seals "Katon no Jutso!" The clearing was filled with a giant fireball that dissipated a few feet from the edge of the clearing.

"That won't work on us, Uchiha. Our suits are fireproof. Specially provided for this mission." The man gave a raspy laugh as his mask filtered his voice.

Fugaku frowned. The Rain ninja were standing in the same place they were before the jutsu. He had to get rid of them, well most of them. He would keep one to question.

One of the teams rushed at him and this time he held his ground, pulling a katana out as they approached. The first one to attack ducked below the sword, but Fugaku was ready for him and, pushing chakra into his foot, kicked the man across the clearing and into a tree. The katana connected with the second ninja, slicing him through the shoulder and severing his right arm. The man collapsed on the ground with a cry of pain. The third ninja had pulled out an unopened umbrella and blocked the Katana as he slid down to the ground and swung his feet under Fugaku. He allowed himself to be knocked down, then when the kunoichi, the fourth member of the group ran over with another unopened umbrella to stab him, he pushed his katana up through her throat while kicking the third ninja in the chest, knocking him across the clearing to land next to his companion.

The second team had taken time to prepare while the first team was taken out and a volley of poison needles were thrown at Fugaku as he performed a substitution jutsu to get out of the way. The needles hit the log and the bodies of their two teammates who were still laying on the ground. The man and woman convulsed for a couple seconds then stopped moving. Dead.

Perched back in the tree above the four remaining ninja Fugaku decided it was time for some Genjutsu. Singling out one of the ninja he cast a Genjutsu to make the man look like him. The other three ninja stared at him in shock, then one of them pulled a kunai and attacked. The other two saw through the Genjutsu and tried to stop him, but it was too late. He slit his partner's throat and blood splattered as his visage returned to normal.

"So only one of you is susceptible to low level Genjutsu." Fugaku spoke out loud. They turned and looked up to where he was crouched on a tree limb.

"Get down here and fight! None of that crap Genjutsu shit!" The ninja who had just murdered his teammate was livid.

Fugaku laughed out loud. "Make me." He performed more hand signs and placed five clones around the three ninjas and jumped down from the tree, cleanly decapitating two of them in one swing. The remaining ninja fell back onto the ground to avoid being struck. But Fugaku had no intention of killing him.

"Tell me where Madara is!" He yelled at the man on the ground.

"I will never betray the revolution!" The Rain ninja pulled out a Kunai and stabbed it quickly through his eye into his brain, falling over dead a second later.

Fugaku walked over to the two ninja he had thrown into the tree, but their necks were broken and they were unconscious, soon to be dead. He let out a loud curse and returned to the Konoha main gate. Minato would be back soon and he was wanted to hear about this "third" option.

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"Minato. Were you waiting long?" Fugaku jumped down from a tree.

"No, I just got here a few seconds ago. Did you see anything?"

"Rain ninja. I took out eight of them. There must be more. They were wearing fire-proof suits specially prepared for the attack so there is an additional risk here." Fugaku looked at the map Minato had spread open in front of him.

"Madara is well prepared. So is Hanzou sending his people here, or is it the rumored revolutionaries?"

"It is the revolutionaries. One of them committed suicide in the name of the revolution so he wouldn't have to answer any questions."

"That's not good. If these people are that devoted we could be in for one hell of a fight. That could also explain why it is taking so long for some of the teams to report back. No one from the South has returned. There must be an army there, or something akin to an army. I just sent out some more ninja on a fact finding mission, so they should be reporting back soon." Minato looked back at the map. Several of the laboratories had red "X's" through them, indicating that the premises had been checked.

"Hiashi is checking the Northeast himself." Fugaku noticed that the area had three laboratories, but no "X's". "That Orochimaru was sure busy, wasn't he?" It was a rhetorical question. "About your third option?"

"Yes. I have a solution that will place the Kyuubi under our control and out of Madara's hands." Minato looked Fugaku directly in the eye.

"In our control?" He couldn't mean it. "Your baby? You would sacrifice your son?"

"He will live. He is not of the Uchiha blood so the Kyuubi will not have the same effect on him. However, as he grows he will be able to draw on the Kyuubi's chakra. Our sons may be the ones to stop Madara. Itachi, Shisui, Sasuke and Naruto. All bound by the sins of their fathers, so to speak. Children to be used as pawns, but destined to grow up to be kings." He sighed and looked down. "There is no other way, Fugaku. We are unable to stop Madara, all we can do now is delay him. I have passed information along to Jiraiya, whom I have also tasked with training Naruto to use the Kyuubi chakra. Hopefully it will be enough for him to grow into a strong, powerful, good man."

"You know you will die. Madara wanted you dead."

"Yeah." He gave a short laugh. "He wins that bet."

"Minato, you're waxing poetic. I'm sorry it had to turn out this way. But I fear you are right. Sealing the Kyuubi in a non-Uchiha body is good plan."

"Fugaku. One thing still bothers me. The clansmen that were killed at the Uchiha gathering this year. What really happened? Nothing they told me was of any threat to your clan."

"Humph. You are right. They were passing information on to the village hidden in the Stones. Some of it was pretty damaging. I never found out what there ultimate goal was, but considering the fact that the only Uchiha who refused to attend the gathering was also living about fifty miles outside the Stone village, I decided that the risk of our Kekkei Genkai getting into the enemies hands was too great. I passed judgment and arranged for their execution."

"So that explains why all the Uchiha were moved back to the village or the capital."

"Yes. I obviously needed a tighter hand on my people."

"And when this is over?"

"I have a list of those involved. Don't worry, Minato. I will take care of them. Most will be executed." Fugaku knew the Fourth was checking on the future welfare of his village. "I will also involve the Third in the judgment. The village will see this as a possible betrayal by my clan. I realize it will take a while to regain their trust."

"Thank-you, Fugaku." Minato gave a small smirk. Things weren't always what they seemed. He still didn't understand why the two most powerful clans in the village refused to completely open up to the Hokages. They were secretive and maintained their own law. He thought back to his student, Obito. The boy had been a member of the main branch but he was, in many ways, a goof off. He suspected the boy was afraid of success, even though he tried hard, in the end he always seemed to sabotage his own efforts. Another sigh. He was also Kagura's son.

Minato closed his eyes. "Fugaku, was Obito involved in this?"

Fugaku swung his head around a little to fast.

"So he was." Minato sighed and looked down. His own student.

"It was lucky he died when he did." Fugaku suddenly felt he needed to lessen the impact. "He was involved in the beginning stages because of his parents influence. It is hard to say if he would have stayed on their side, but his mother is quite formidable and he rarely disobeyed her. He was, however, quite devoted to you and his teammates. Really, dying when he did saved him from a lot of heartache. He would have had to choose between you or his mother. Who knows what would have happened."

"You are right. If there is a way, don't pass this information on to anyone else. Especially Obito's old teammate's Kakashi and Rin."

"Of course."

"I think I have found Madara!" Hiashi jumped down from a tree and walked over to the two men. "There is an area, right here." He pointed to a spot in the middle of the northeast corner. "There is a very strong Genjutsu cast. We have been over it a dozen times and we cannot find the laboratory that is supposed to be there. My Byakugan couldn't see through the Genjutsu either so it must be extremely powerful. That must be where he is."

"Great. We have him then." Minato and Fugaku followed Hiashi back into the forest as the sun disappeared behind the horizon.

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Itachi tried to move his arms and legs but they were restrained. He felt very warm and wanted to kick off his blanket. He tried to roll, but someone pushed him back into his original position.

"Is he awake?" A child's voice spoke but whose voice?

"Yes. He's probably a little disoriented." Was that mother speaking? No, it was someone else. "Itachi, try to open your eyes."

He slowly opened his eyes, but his bedroom was very different. Did his mother re-decorate? She mentioned a couple weeks ago that his room could use some modifications. But why did she make it look like a cave? He thought she was just going to take down some of his anime posters and stuffed animals.

"…hear me?" He thought he heard something. Fingers snapped in front of his face and he jerked his head. "Itachi! Can you hear me?" His eyes met the eyes of a woman who was kneeling beside him.

"Kisa?" He answered in a weak voice. He heard several people sigh. "Why are there so many people in my bedroom? And why is my bed lumpy?" He looked up and realized his head and shoulders were on his mother's lap and his lower back and rear end were on Shisui's lap.

"Mother made me sit like this so I couldn't wonder away." Shisui said in a voice that said he would love nothing more than _to_ wonder away. Kisa laughed at her son, then lifted Itachi up as Shisui stood up and helped pulled the blankets off of him. She then stood the boy on his feet, holding his arms as a wave of dizziness caused him to sway.

"What is wrong with mother?" Mikoto was asleep, but she had tears leaking out of her eyes.

"Ummm." Kisa couldn't think of how to tell him, and bowed her head.

Shisui looked at his mother then spoke. "I came over to your house so we could go to the lake and train, but you and Lady Mikoto were unconscious and Sasuke had been kidnapped. Kagura did it. She poisoned you and your mother and stole your baby brother. Fugaku and my dad went after her. They'll get him back." He paused. His mouth went dry when he realized the gravity of what he had to say next. Speaking in a quiet voice that only Itachi and Kisa could hear he said it… "She kidnapped him under the orders of Madara."

Itachi's head jerked up fast and his eyes blazed. Sasuke's real father kidnapped him. After all the stuff he said about how they were brothers and he didn't want to hurt mother. "Where is he?" The voice that uttered the question was dark and filled with hatred. "Where is the bastard that took my brother?"

Shisui gulped once, then stepped back. Kisa answered the question. "We don't know. Fugaku gathered teams of Uchiha together, and the rest of the village is also helping to located him. I'm…I'm sure they will find him."

Itachi turned around to walk away, but Kisa grabbed his arm gently to pull him back. "Please don't wander away. We are in the tunnels away from the battle. The other people in the tunnels are not happy with Uchiha right now because of Madara. They might hurt you..." She didn't get to finish her sentence.

Itachi did a transportation jutsu to get out of her grasp and appeared at the other end of the room near a primitive door that had been carved to fit the cavern's opening. Shisui appeared next to him a second later. The other clan members in the cave gasped in shock, and some stood up quickly to look at the two boys. There was muttering amongst the clan members, shocked words concerning jutsus and children who should be too young to know them. The boys opened the door and stepped out into the hall.

There was a window cut into the cave across from the door. It was rectangular in shape and ran for about twenty feet. The sun was about to set. A couple Uchihas who were on guard duty followed them, but hung back. They figured the clan heir was just a little shocked and wanted to be alone, so they weren't going to force him back inside yet.

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Kagura was aware that time had passed since she had entered the underground chamber, but she was no longer able to count the minutes. She spent her time talking to Sasuke. Telling him stories about Obito, and how great a child he was and how much Sasuke looked like him. She mixed up some formula and fed him when he started getting fussy, then changed his diaper and watched him nap for a while.

Kentaro watched them for a long time, then walked outside to stand in the autumn air. He was glad his last day was sunny. He thought about Kagura. She was not herself. Loosing Obito had been hard for her, but meeting Madara had completely unhinged her. Her insistence that Madara was Obito was disturbing. He wondered, for the hundredth time if there was some kind of connection between the two. The eyes...that kid Kakashi had one of Obito's eyes. Madara wore a mask that revealed one eye…the one Kakashi left behind. Did he steal Obito's body, or just the eye? Or nothing? He had read the tablet on the wall in the Uchiha secret chamber in the temple, but he still had so many questions about just what Madara was. He himself had attained the Mangekyou Sharingan, but he had never used any of the advanced jutsus. He had not sought out the advanced Sharingan, it had happened when his friend, his best friend in the world attacked him during a mission.

They were both fifteen at the time. The boy had been pumped full of drugs from an enemy's poisoned senbon needles and attacked his team mates. Kentaro had been forced to kill him. The guilt was unbelievable and it was four months before he could bring himself to go on another mission. Their sensei had quit the ninja corps after that and moved away to become a farmer.

"So long ago." He said to himself. He wondered what had ever happened to his sensei after he left. There were never any letters and he never went to visit him. Suddenly he remembered promising that he would visit. Perhaps he never made it to the farm and went somewhere else. "I should have gone looking for him when we didn't hear anything. It's too late though… too late."

Kentaro walked back inside the chamber. "Kagura the sun has set. We need to begin. Word will come from Madara soon."

Sasuke started crying and Kagura bent down to give him a kiss on the cheek, then stood up and looked over at Kentaro. She walked over to her old friend, looking straight ahead. When she was two feet away she knelt down on her knees, folding her hands in her lap.

"Kentaro. You know what to do." She bowed her body forward, then sat back up. The old man drew out his Katana and with one long swipe, cut off her head.

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Madara stood outside the seal and stared at the old man in the middle. He was the current Jinchuuriki for the Kyuubi. The nine tailed fox demon. He had been hard to find. The old man had moved to an isolated village and kept to himself. When Madara had finally found him a year and a half ago the man had been ill. As time went on, it became plain that he would die in the next couple years. Old age had caught up with him and he had contracted many ailments. The amount of medication that Kagura had the man taking was amazing, but it kept him alive until tonight.

He thought about the fox demon. "Now, it is time to set you free, and then imprison you inside a new Jinchuuriki." Madara removed his gloves and mask and put them in a pouch hanging from his belt. He folded his hands in front of his face with his two index fingers pointing straight up. Meditating, he cleared his mind of stray thoughts. The jutsu to draw out a demon was hazardous, to say the least. There were no do-overs. If he messed up the worst that could happen was that he, the jinchuuriki and the demon would all die. Well, the jinchuuriki was going to die anyway.

Performing a series of twenty-five seals Madara bit his finger to draw blood, then slammed his palm on the ground just outside the seal. "Demon Release no Jutsu!" He yelled.

Almost instantly red chakra began to swirl around the old man. The man woke up and screamed in pain, fighting against his ropes. After a couple minutes he fell unconscious again and stopped struggling. The red chakra began to grow outward in a whirlwind that was caught inside the seal. Madara backed off about thirty feet and stood waiting. Soon a head and tails began to form. The head had deep black eyes and long white teeth. The tails formed, one at a time. First a stub, then a long graceful red tail as long as the body. After all nine tails formed the fox began to growl and snap. Its body started to coalesce next, and finally the chakra that was holding up the body began to shrink back and form the legs.

"Madara! Release me from this seal so I can rip you into a thousand pieces!" The deep, throaty voice of the nine-tailed demon fox spoke with rage. "I have been a prisoner inside that meek old man for his entire life. Only to finally be released and held within a seal by the man responsible for my imprisonment in the first place."

"Humph. And how do you come to the conclusion that I was responsible for imprisoning you?" Madara smirked at the creature.

"The seals are your creation. No matter who uses them, it is your fault." He pushed against the barrier and growled in frustration.

"Kyuubi. I will release you. But, if you look to the west you will see Konoha. Don't you have unfinished business there? Isn't there a Hokage you swore to kill?" Madara yelled the words up to the monster without fear. His Mangekyo Sharingan was blazing, as he looked the Kyuubi directly in the eye.

Kyuubi looked down at the tall man, and into his eyes. "Those eyes. The cursed blood of the Uchiha. You would be better off if you all just dropped dead. How about I help you with that? Starting with you!" He pushed against the seal with all his strength and tried again to break it.

"Kyuubi! I will give you an order!" Madara paused, then yelled "Tsukiyomi!"

Suddenly the two of them were in an alternate world. Everything was red, except for the black clouds drifting quickly across the sky and the black shadows that splayed across the ground. The Kyuubi immediately calmed down and looked at Madara with a cold, calculating stare. He did not appreciate the ease with which the man was able to contain him and he decided to watch him closely to see if an opportunity to strike would present itself. He doubted it would though. Madara was way too clever for that to happen. After a couple minutes the man finally spoke.

"Attack Konoha and kill the Hokage! He will likely come to you, perhaps with his summons Gamabunta."

"Ha, ha, ha. So that's how you want to play it, huh?" The Kyuubi laughed some more. "Fine, we will play by your rules for a while, since I have no choice. I will get to destroy Konoha and the Hokage, so I get what I want anyway. Now release this seal!"

"Right away." He released the Tsukiyomi jutsu then performed another series of hand signs, bit his thumb again to re-open the cut, then slammed his palm against the ground. The seal disappeared.

The whirlwind that was released when the seal dropped was akin to an F5 tornado. The strongest known. Madara was prepared, though, and had quickly hidden underground using an earth jutsu as trees and bushes were ripped from the ground and carried off by the wind.

Some ways away Fugaku, Minato and Hiashi jumped to the ground and lay flat as the wind passed over them. After a couple minutes they stood up again, brushing branches and leaves off themselves. Luckily the trees in front of them had been outside the blast zone and didn't blow over. Unluckily – straight ahead, in plain view, was the red figure of a giant, 100 foot (at least) nine-tailed demon fox. Three grown men, the most powerful in the village, looked at the sight with fear in their hearts. Fear for themselves, fear for their families, fear for the village they grew up in and the people they shared it with. The fact is, it is one thing to read about a giant demon fox, but it is a completely different thing altogether to actually see it and feel its strength.

Recovering quickly the three men agreed to split up. Minato would distract the beast while Fugaku and Hiashi continued to look for the missing laboratory. They pulled out some wireless radios, tuned to a common frequency and took off.

Watching the two men run off into what was left of the forest, Minato formed his hands quickly into a series of hand seals, bit his thumb and slammed his palm on the ground. There was loud "pop" and the Fourth Hokage found himself perched on the back of a giant frog.

"Gamabunta. I need your assistance."

"What?" The frog had a drawl that lengthened his words. "I was relaxing. Why did you call me…WHAT IS HE DOING OUT?" The frog yelled. Minato was taken aback. He had never heard him yell that loud before.

"Madara has released him so he can re-seal him in a different jinchuuriki. We need to distract him so Fugaku Uchiha and Hiashi Hyuuga can find the location of the baby he is planning on using."

"That's all well and good, but it doesn't get rid of the pest."

"I will take care of that. He wants to seal the demon in an Uchiha baby. I will instead seal it inside of my baby."

"Then, Minato, this is goodbye. I will do my best to distract the beast."

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Back at the hidden tunnels and caves Itachi and Shisui were looking outside as the early evening darkness spread. The first thing they had noticed, after looking through the window, was that they were high up on the mountain overlooking the village where the Hokage's visages were sculpted into the rock. It was an amazing view.

"What is that?" Itachi looked towards the northeast and saw something that looked like a dust cloud.

Shisui was just as curious. "A tornado? But why is it red?" The two guards walked over and looked as well.

Three Konoha ninja were walking though the corridor a few feet down from them and walked over to look, then walked away, one of them giving a short laugh. They were carrying someone between them.

The whirlwind finally started to settle down and formed into a giant animal. "What is that?" Itachi asked. Some of the other Uchiha's had heard the commotion and came out to look, among them was Mikoto, Kisa, and Saiyu.

"It is the Kyuubi. The nine-tailed demon fox." Saiyu answered slowly. She knew Kentaro was out there. She knew he wasn't coming back. But she was sure it would be worth it. The clan needed Madara's vision to lead them back onto the path.

The shockwave hit the village a minute later. Luckily there was no glass in the window - it was cut from the rock. However, the wind was still unpleasant. Mikoto and Kisa grabbed the boys and pushed them down to the floor, as everyone around them also dropped down. A few seconds later the blast was over. Standing back up they all looked back at the demon. He looked even more menacing now. And he appeared to be making his way to the village. His great tails swung back and forth, toppling trees and uprooting vegetation. The full moon shone over him, lighting up the night sky.

"It's…beautiful." Itachi muttered under his breath. The raw power and devastation the monster could unleash, the falling trees, the moon, it was all perfect. This is what it meant to be powerful.

Completely unaware of what Itachi was saying, Shisui said the same thing. For the same reason. 'If I had that kind of power I would be the best ninja in the world. No one could stand up to me. If Madara summoned him, then I hope he returns to me soon.' Shisui's thoughts were a little more sophisticated than his cousin's.

No one noticed the lust for power that the boys showed on their faces as they watched the monster, all thoughts of Sasuke forgotten.

"Look! The Fourth's summons has appeared!" Someone pointed out the giant frog that stood between the village and the fox. The fox growled loudly and launched itself at the frog, who jumped over the top of him and landing to its right.

"Is that really going to stop him?" Someone else asked.

"No." Mikoto answered. "Fugaku, please find Sasuke soon." She knew what the boy was going to be used for. As a member of the main branch, and wife of the clan lord, she knew more than she ever wanted to know.

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The Kyuubi growled in irritation as the frog kept jumping around. Swinging his tail he hit as many trees as he could reach. Unfortunately there were also a lot of ninjas in and around the trees. They were rushing in from the North, West and East. The ninjas who were assigned to the South still had not returned, even the messengers Minato had sent to check on them had not returned.

Gamabunta paused when Minato asked him to stop. "This is where we part ways. I must join Fugaku and Hiashi to see what they have found. You have been a great friend, and if we meet again in another life it will be a joyful occasion." Minato jumped down the frogs back and onto the ground.

"I shall await our next meeting then." The frog drawled as he spent a couple seconds watching Minato run off into the forest. Turning back to the fox demon he roared out a challenge. "You will not get within one inch of Konoha, fox!"

"Ha!" The demon threw Gamabunta's words back at him. "Not only will I destroy Konoha, but I will be eating frog's legs for a celebration feast afterwards!"

The fox and the frog launched themselves at each other, and this time they met in mid air.

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**Please review! Anonymous reviews are accepted.**

**Put this story in you Story Alerts and you will get an e-mail when the next chapter is posted next Friday.**

**Next Time: "Chapter 13 – The Fox and the Frog" The sealing begins, but who is being sealed? Can Gamabunta sidetrack the Fox long enough for Minato to follow through with his plan? **


	13. Chapter 13 The Fox and the Frog

**In the previous chapter the civilians were evacuated to the tunnels. Minato meets with Kushina and explains his plan, which she grudgingly accepts. Fugaku has a run in with some rain ninja. The Kyuubi and Gamabunta appear.**

**Please review. Anonymous reviews are accepted.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 13 – The Fox and the Frog**

The ground shook as the Kyuubi and Gamabunta collided in midair then jumped back away from each other. The frog reached behind his back and pulled out a sword. Looking in the direction Minato ran a few minutes earlier he silently hoped it wouldn't take too long to seal the Kyuubi. He knew he was no match for the demon.

Kyuubi jumped sideways then ran forward again. He knew the frog was trying to detain him. That Hokage was, no doubt, able to seal him away. He guessed that he had very little time left. "Damn that Madara! He should have killed the Hokage himself then let me out."

"You aren't a complete idiot, I see." Gamabunta answered.

On the ground Toshiro and a few other Uchiha ninjas were preparing to set up a barrier – the same barrier they used to seal off their compound when they went to the gathering a few months earlier. Only this time it was going to be tall and wide, like a huge wall. They quickly instructed some skilled Konoha ninja to help – hoping to extend the length.

Gamabunta stood his ground between the Kyuubi and Konoha. He saw the barrier being prepared a few hundred feet behind him. It wouldn't stop him, but it would slow him down temporarily.

The Kyuubi attacked Gamabunta again as the barrier went up. The frog swung his sword at the frog as the fox grabbed the sword in his teeth. Wrenching the sword out of the frog's hands he tossed it behind him. It landed in the ground, blade embedded deep in the soil. Gamabunta kicked at the fox's belly and the fox flew back, quickly righting himself and landing on his feet, then immediately launched himself at the frog again. Using his teeth he grabbed for the frogs right arm, but he was kicked back again. He jumped up into the air and landed on top of the frog.

Behind them the barrier sprang to life. It was the height of the trees around it and stretched a quarter of the way around the village. The ninjas quickly dispersed to the west and prepared to set up another barrier. Toshiro quickly prayed that no one came near the barrier. It was deadly and the possibility that friendly ninja would get caught in it was very high.

The frog and the fox tumbled around for a few minutes, the fox trying to bite the frog and the frog trying to kick the fox. Neither could get an upper hand. However, Kyuubi knew that the frog did not have the stamina that he did. All he had to do was stretch the fight out and he would win. The problem was – did he have enough time left to stretch it out long enough.

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Back at the tunnels Itachi and Shisui watched the battle, their excitement growing by the minute. It was the most amazing thing they had ever seen. Standing stock still they concentrated on every movement the frog and fox made. The bright full moon lit up the night sky and every detail of the fight could be clearly seen.

"It's pretty amazing, isn't it?" Itachi and Shisui jumped, then turned their heads slightly. Just enough to see Kabuto standing behind them.

"Yeah!" Both boys answered.

"It's the coolest thing I've ever seen." Yota was standing next to Kabuto. Apparently they had been hanging out together before joining the two Uchiha boys.

"What do your eyes see, Yota?" Shisui asked. A few people standing around looked at the Hyuuga, curious to hear the answer.

Yota activated his Byakugan and looked at both giant creatures for a minute. "The Kyuubi has an unbelievable amount of chakra. It's like that's all it's made of. I can't see any body on it at all. The frog has a body and regular chakra system, but he also has an unbelievable amount of chakra."

Saiyu spoke up. "The Kyuubi is a creature born of chakra, so you are seeing correctly young Hyuuga."

"Whoa. That's weird." Yota answered.

Kabuto leaned over and whispered into Itachi's ear. "What's wrong with your mother?"

Itachi looked at Mikoto. She was dabbing at her eyes with a white cloth. He whispered back. "My little brother was kidnapped earlier. We don't know where he is, then all this started."

Kabuto straightened up in shock. His foster father said he was probably kidnapped. He had no memories of his life before being found at Kikyou pass, in the middle of a battle field. What if the same thing happened to Itachi's little brother? Kabuto was truly scared of only one thing – the past he couldn't remember. He wasn't sure why he did it, but he reached over and took Mikoto's hand.

Mikoto felt a small hand wrap around hers and she looked down at the white haired boy. He was looking down at the floor. She felt sorry for Kabuto. No memories. No clan. He did have a good foster father though. He lucked out. But Sasuke. If they didn't get him back…if he ended up in the hands of strangers…would he also be lucky enough to find someone caring enough to love him in her place? She hoped so. But deep down she doubted it. Luck wasn't evenly dispensed, after all. She squeezed the boy's hand once and they both went back to watching the battle.

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Madara appeared in the old laboratory a couple minutes after releasing the Kyuubi. The first thing he saw was Kagura's corpse. Kentaro had moved her to one side against the wall and covered her with a blanket he found on an abandoned rack. He paused for a minute, thinking. He knew this was going to happen. But he also knew that she would not get a good burial. Fugaku would be too angry to allow it. 'Can't be helped' he said to himself and turned away.

Kentaro was sitting on the floor in the center of the seal next to Sasuke. The baby had stopped crying and was asleep. As Madara approached Kentaro moved into a kneeling position so he could pay his respects, then stood up.

"You may begin the ceremony in thirty minutes. That should give the Kyuubi enough time to have some fun. However, Minato is on his way. I saw Gamabunta appear. No doubt the Yondaime Hokage is using him to distract the Kyuubi. I will be back after you have finished to retrieve the child." Madara's voice was deep and business-like. He had not replaced his mask so Kentaro was able to see the man's face for the first time since he was a child.

Even though Madara's mask only had one eye hole, the man showed two functioning eyes. Or if one of them was bad he sure found a good way to make it look functional. His handsome face was young – as if he was in his twenties – and he actually looked a little bit like Mikoto with his smooth skin and lack of lines, but he had bags under his eyes. Fugaku and Itachi, and many of the other Uchiha's for that matter had deep lines on their faces between their cheekbones and noses. He wondered if his image was the result of a genjutsu, or if he was showing his real face. In reality he should be around one-hundred years old, more or less.

Kentaro remembered seeing Madara a few times when he was a young child around Itachi and Shisui's ages. When he was four Konoha had been officially made into a hidden village and the Uchiha clan had joined. The Shodaime Hokage had been a regular visitor to the Uchiha compound, keeping a close eye on the education of the young ninjas. Madara didn't approve of the Hokage's interference. He had his own training methods. Kentaro smiled at that memory. He had seen them argue once in front of the children about some sort of "secret ceremony" that had occurred the night before. He hadn't understood at the time what they were talking about, but now he did. Two days later Madara left the village, never to return. A short time after that the battle at the Valley of the End supposedly killed him.

A few years later when he had attained his Mangekyo Sharingan the Hokage had visited him in the hospital and given him the third degree about how it had happened. That was when he had learned the truth. Over the course of a week he had been continually questioned. The man was relentless and refused to believe it was an accident. He had learned to hate the Hokage during that week, and the Shodaime knew it. But he didn't care. He even suggested that if he had any brains he should kill the boy to keep that cursed eye jutsu away from his village. The Uchiha elders freaked out and threatened dire consequences if Kentaro was hurt in any way, but the Shodaime had no actual intention of hurting him. He was just venting his frustration.

Kentaro had been heavily traumatized by the whole incident. His best friend was dead, his sensei had left the village and his Hokage was verbally attacking him. Luckily the Uchiha elders were understanding, as were his parents and older brother and sister. They didn't baby him, far from it. But they supported him as only a clan can. He smiled. He owed his life to the clan, and to Madara who united them. The Hokages could go to hell for all he cared.

The old man checked his watch. "I will be ready. The child's diaper bag is against the wall. It has diapers, food, and a few articles of clothing. Also there is a list of instructions from Kagura in case you have any questions about caring for him."

"Hmm. Okay. It has been a long time since I was in charge of an infant. I'll probably just render him unconscious. It's just one day so he should be fine if he misses a few meals. The ceremony will probably upset him anyway. He may not be able to eat for a while."

"Well, he's healthy enough. I guess that's okay. Just make sure he gets a good meal when you hand him over."

Madara smiled. "Of course." He turned around and left the underground chamber.

A few minutes later Kentaro heard a noise on the stairway and turned around, expecting to see Madara returning. He quickly stood up. "What the hell are you doing! Who is that! Get out of here!" He yelled at the three ninja as they dragged an unconscious woman into the laboratory and dumped her on the ground a couple feet from the seal.

"The Hokage's wife." One of them answered as he unsheathed his sword.

"Kushina? Why is she here?" Kentaro stood between Sasuke and the ninjas. He recognized them as some Rain ninjas Madara had brought with him for backup. The woman moaned and woke up. "My god she's in labor! What is going through your minds?"

"The Hokage of these parts had it in his mind to use this baby" He pointed his sword at the woman's swollen belly "instead of that one." He moved his sword so it pointed at Sasuke. "Now he can't." The ninja stabbed his sword through the woman's heart, then pulled it out.

His teammate laughed. "Dead people don't work good in sealing ceremonies, I bet."

Kentaro was dumbstruck. As experienced as he was, as jaded to violence as he though himself to be, this was by far one of the most twisted things he had ever seen. The three men showed no emotions over killing the woman.

Kushina was clutching her chest with one hand and her stomach with the other. She was mouthing some words "My baby…my baby." Over and over. Kentaro activated his Sharingan and saw her chakra system start to fade.

"You murderous bastards! Get out of here! I don't have time to deal with you! How dare you kill a pregnant woman? Have you no decency?" He wanted to move to the woman's side but he couldn't leave Sasuke unprotected around these guys.

"Kind of like the pot calling the kettle black, huh?" The third ninja had pulled the blanket off of Kagura exposing her headless corpse. He reached down and picked up her head, then waved it around and raised the pitch of his voice to sound like a womans, "Sweety, don't talk like that else I won't give you a kiss later." He then made kissing noises at the old man.

Kentaro snapped. Three seconds later there were three dead rain ninja. He cursed them one last time as he pulled them against the wall. He didn't have the chakra to waste. Putting the blanket back over Kagura he said a short prayer to her soul to apologize for the disturbance. He walked back to Kushina.

Kushina was still alive, somehow. She grabbed Kentaro's arm as he knelt down next to her. "My baby." She said weakly. "Save him." His Sharingan saw her chakra system shut off. She was dead.

Pulling out a kunai Kentaro cut open her abdomen and quickly removed the baby. It was crude, he knew, but it was the only way to save the child. He quickly stood up and held the boy with one hand as he ran to a sink. There was no hot water. "Damn!" He ran the cold water and washed him off anyway, then grabbed one of Sasuke's diapers and quickly put it on him. He wrapped him in one of the spare blankets from the same rack he got Kagura's earlier. All the time he was doing this the boy was crying very, very loudly. Not a hungry or needy cry, but, somehow, it sounded angry. Maybe it was just Kentaro's conscious. He grabbed a couple more folded blankets and put them next to Sasuke's diaper bag then placed the baby on top of them. Surely Madara would place the infant somewhere he would be found. He hoped so, anyway. He touched the boys blond hair. He sure had a lot of it for a newborn.

Kushina was moved so she was next to Kagura. And another blanket was placed over the top of her. He looked at his watch. It was almost time to start.

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Fugaku and Hiashi ran through the woods after leaving Minato. Hiashi was in the lead, as he knew where the area that was disguised with Genjutsu was located. A few minutes later he stopped. He started to talk, but Fugaku held up his hand, indicating quiet. Activating his Sharingan he looked around the area. There was a Genjutsu, and it was the most powerful Genjutsu he had ever experienced.

The Uchiha pointed to the left and held up two fingers, then to the right and held up three fingers. Hiashi nodded and took off to the right as Fugaku ran the other way. Both men quickly found their targets – five Uchiha clansmen were creating the Genjutsu.

Hiashi came up on the first one quietly, then quickly engaged him. They both stood still for a second, then Hiashi ran at him and pushed his hands at the dodging man while using his "gentle fist" style of fighting. The Uchiha didn't seem to be familiar with the Hyuuga style of fighting. Hiashi quickly remembered that some of Fugaku's clan lived in the capital. This must be one of them. The other two Uchiha ninja held their positions, maintaining the Genjutsu while their comrade fought.

"Yoshinori! Watch out for his hands! You are fighting a Hyuuga." One of the ninjas yelled some advice to his cousin, but it was too late as Hiashi tapped the man's chest. Yoshinori collapsed on the ground, unable to move.

The two remaining Uchihas approached Hiashi warily. These two were going to be harder to fight. They knew about his Kekkei Genkai and likely had a plan on how to fight against it. The two ninja stopped about ten feet away and looked at him, and their fallen comrade.

"What are you waiting for?" Hiashi crouched down, putting his arms out in front of him so he could fight.

"Hmm. You think that just because you came here we will fight you?" The man laughed. "Our orders, despite what my hotheaded cousin just did, were not to fight anyone. Once we were discovered there was no need to maintain the Genjutsu."

"Then leave." He maintained his fighting stance, half expecting the men to attack if he backed down.

"Move away from Yoshinori so we can take him and we will leave."

Hiashi sighed and moved, letting the men grab the unconscious man and take to the trees, running. It was a good strategy. Anyone strong enough to see through the Genjutsu would be too strong for the underlings maintaining it so there was no need for them to fight. Which meant…"Shit!" Hiashi yelled and took off at a run.

"You're back! Did your guys run away as well?" Fugaku was looking frustrated. One hand was clenched tightly around his Katana and the other hand in a fist by his side.

"You know who is on the other side of this barrier." Hiashi growled the words.

"Madara." The Genjutsu failed at that moment and the forest reappeared. "The question is, where exactly is he?"

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Gamabunta sighed. He was running out of chakra. When he did he would no longer be able to stay in this world. He would automatically return to the summon's realm. 'I have held him off for nearly twenty-five minutes. I hope that was enough, Minato. There is nothing more I can do. I am sorry.' His thoughts sounded hollow. He glanced behind him and saw that the Uchiha and Konoha ninjas had erected a barrier, but it wouldn't hold the fox demon for long. In fact, it would be almost useless. But humans never gave up and not building the barrier would have been outside their nature.

"Frog! You are almost out of chakra. You have delayed me but not stopped me." The fox laughed.

"We will meet again, Fox. You can count on it." The Frog's deep voice drawled the words out slowly. "Goodbye, for now." He disappeared, and his sword followed a minute later as the giant fox demon gave a roar of victory and launched himself at the barrier.

Deadly to humans, the barrier burned the fox when he touched it. But because he was a creature of chakra and had no physical body he did not feel pain like living creatures do. He kept throwing himself at the barrier. After ten tries he broke through and rushed to the outside wall of the village.

Madara watched the Kyuubi from his perch on top of a nearby tree and laughed. The fox was enjoying his little romp in the outside world. "Soon, in a few years, you will be free to romp all you want, Kyuubi. Just bear with me for a little while longer."

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Fugaku and Hiashi ran through the woods and quickly came upon an underground staircase. Masking their chakra they walked down the stairs and silently opened the door. Standing inside the chamber, looking straight at them was Kentaro. Behind him, laying on a pillow in the center of a seal drawn on the ground was Sasuke. He was crying loudly. A second baby was also crying. Fugaku looked around, puzzled, until he noticed five bodies and one small blond haired baby next to a diaper bag.

"Kentaro. It is time for you to die. There is no excuse for this." Fugaku had expected his voice to be stern and powerful when he met up with his traitorous mentor. But instead, he felt something different. Betrayal and sorrow. This was a man he had trusted with his life. His family's lives, and the lives of his clansmen. He was third in line for the clan chief title. "Why? Kentaro, why would you do this?"

The old man looked him directly in the eye. "The Uchiha have strayed from the path. Madara is the path. The true Sharingan calls to us and tells us what we must be."

"Do you not understand what it means to follow the path? The blood that must be shed? The children we loose? We don't even have any children right now. As it stands we will die out. Why do you want to make it worse?"

"You have three boys. That is all it takes. The warrior that will be born of that bond will stand beside Madara and lead us to glory!" Kentaro wanted more than anything for his young charge to believe him. But for some reason, Fugaku had never followed the philosophy of the man who had practically raised him.

Fugaku was mad now. He raised his sword and pointed it at Kentaro. "I will not sacrifice my children so that some washed up sadist can strut around playing God!" He rushed at the elder. The man swerved to one side and then moved back toward the staircase, effectively moving the fight away from the seal and the two boys. Hiashi quickly ran to the center of the seal and grabbed Sasuke, then moved to where Naruto was. He placed Sasuke on the blanket next to the blond baby then crouched down in front of them in case the fighting moved back in their direction. The babies stopped crying.

Fugaku and Kentaro started to fight using Taijutsu. Anything more powerful could harm the chamber and by default the babies. Kentaro had use of the Mangekyo Sharingan, but if he used it he would not have enough chakra left to perform the ceremony. Suddenly, after only a few moves, Kentaro stopped and dropped to his knees.

"I cannot fight you like this, Fugaku. I cannot harm the children. If I kill you I will not have enough chakra to continue the ceremony."

The clan leader looked at the man. "Where is Kagura and who is the other baby?"

"Kagura asked me to kill her because she could not bring herself to do the ceremony. The baby is Minato's. Those three ninja" he swung his head over to the bodies "brought Kushina in here then killed her before I could stop them. I cut the baby out of her body." He put his hands in front of his face in prayer, then bowed down to the floor and sat back up and closed his eyes.

Fugaku had wanted to torture the man for what he had done, but now as he looked at him he knew he couldn't do such a thing. He smiled, a burst of relief running through him as he realized that he wasn't like his father after all. He wasn't a homicidal maniac. "Kentaro. Thank-you." He swung his sword down and quickly removed the elder's head.

"I radioed the Hokage and he should be here in a minute. He has been fighting some rain ninja's apparently." Hiashi ran up the stairs.

Fugaku watched him leave, then moved Kentaro's body next to Kagura's. He pulled back Kagura's blanket a little to look at her. "I hope you are with Obito now, Kagura. I'm sorry it had to turn out this way, but I have Sasuke back now. I can never forgive you, but… I want you to be happy. If that makes any sense." He suddenly felt anger toward Madara for leading a grief stricken mother astray.

Standing up he walked over to see his son. He picked the boy up and held him to his chest – much like he did with Itachi months ago when he was almost killed at the Uchiha hideout. "It's okay now, Sasuke. You are safe and back with your family."

He heard Minato enter the chamber. Fugaku looked at the other baby. "It wasn't supposed to be like this." He felt very guilty and his words were tinged with sorrow. The little blond baby would be an orphan in a few minutes. "Who will care for him?"

Minato was standing beside him. "Jiraiya will see to his care."

"I will work with Jiraiya. If anything else is needed… It is our fault."

"It is Madara's fault. Not yours." Minato bent down and picked up his son. "So much hair!"

"Girls like hair, he'll probably be pretty popular when he gets older." Fugaku gave a small smile that Minato returned.

"Please go back outside and keep watch with Hiashi. Madara will no doubt try to return when he discovers his plot has failed. You can leave Sasuke here for now. It's safer in here than outside, especially if a fight breaks out." Minato walked over to the seal and laid Naruto down on the empty pillow as Fugaku returned Sasuke to the blanket and left the chamber. He looked at Minato one last time before climbing the stairs.

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Yota gasped and grabbed Itachi's shoulder. "The frog is nearly out of chakra! And the fox's chakra hasn't depleted at all!"

"Mother?" Itachi quickly turned to look at Mikoto "Can Sharingan see chakra?"

"Yes it can." She was caught up in the fight, like everyone else and gave a short answer.

"Man, I wish I had it now." Itachi sighed.

"Me too." Shisui answered.

"Oh!" Several people gasped as the frog disappeared. "He ran out of chakra?"

"Is he dead?" Itachi asked.

"No, he returned to the summon's world. It is a different dimension from ours." One of the guards answered.

The fox was at the outside wall of the village a few minutes later. Swinging his tails he rammed his body into the wall. It fell like children's building blocks. The boys jumped when they heard screaming in the tunnels. The guard's quickly reacted.

"Everyone back into the room. The fox is in the village!" Kabuto and Yota turned to go back to where they were supposed to be, but the guard and Mikoto (who still had a hold of Kabuto's hand) pushed them into the room with the rest of the Uchiha clan. "It's too dangerous for children to be roaming around. Just stay here for a while. Your parents will be less mad at you for wandering away and surviving than wandering away and getting killed."

"I'm not sure that made sense." Yota muttered to himself. His parents wouldn't notice anyway so he didn't mind staying for a while.

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Madara watched the walls to the village collapse. "Kentaro should be sealing the Kyuubi away any minute now." The buildings closest to the wall were the first to go. They collapsed quickly as the fox stepped on them, kicking the rubble out of the way.

The fox stopped moving and turned his head to look at his body and tails. There were only eight tails and his body looked liked it was splitting in two. Madara stood still, anger rising. This was not the way the seal was supposed to work. Why was the fox splitting in two? Another tail disappeared and the fox roared. "What is Kentaro up to?" Madara ran back into the forest, arriving at the underground chamber a few minutes later.

"Fugaku. We finally meet." Madara strode into the clearing with purpose, his chakra emanating dark intent.

"Madara. Your plan has failed, it seems. The fox appears to be de-tailed." Fugaku gave a short laugh over his pun. Madara, on the other hand, was not amused.

"What is going on? What happened to Kentaro?"

"Is that the Sharingan I have heard of in the legends?" Fugaku looked closely at Madara's eyes. "It is impressive. But was it really worth it? I think not."

"For you perhaps, who walks meekly though life jumping at shadows and following non-Uchihas like a dog follows his master. But for me, who carries the power to control the demons it is worth every second."

He started to walk past Fugaku when Hiashi spoke up. "Where do you think you are going?"

"Ah. Hyuuga. We left your cradle centuries ago. The sharingan was our reward for doing so."

"It was your curse for betrayal!" Hiashi yelled at him, emotion showing on his face.

"And what do you think about that, Fugaku?" Madara smiled.

"You are definitely cursed, Madara. You are cursed to failure. I will not let you bring the rest of us down when you fall." Fugaku knew how the Hyuuga felt about the Uchiha but he was not going to let Madara turn him against Hiashi. It was childish. "You cannot enter the chamber. If you disturb it the sealing process it will fail."

"Why is the sealing process being done differently?" Madara spoke sternly to Fugaku.

"You cannot enter the chamber!" The two men stood in front of the stairs as Madara looked back at the fox. It had lost all of its tails and the split body was disappearing.

"What happened!" Madara caught Fugaku in his gaze and trapped him in his Tsukiyomi. The alternate world of red and black caught the clan leader by surprise. He had heard of it, but of course, never experience it.

"We can spend as long as is needed for you to tell me what is going on. In the real world, only a second will have passed." Madara's voice was loud and powerful as he strode over to his captive and stabbed him through the chest with a kunai.

Ignoring the pain, Fugaku laughed at him. "Kentaro is dead. I killed him."

"Impossible. He was your mentor, your foster father. If you had killed him you would have the Mangekyo Sharingan. I can see that it has not formed."

"Because you broke that bond. He _was_ all that to me. _Once_. But in the end, he was just a former friend that faded away, grew apart to walk a different path. He was no longer a friend, but a regret."

"Ah. Emotion. You do not have much of that. An Uchiha without emotion cannot achieve power. You have worked hard to remove it from your life, and Itachis. But what works for you, will not work for the boy, as I'm sure you are discovering for yourself."

He ignored the comment about Itachi. "I have enough to feel anger when you kidnapped my son and corrupted my clansmen. I have enough to feel relief when I found him safe, and enough to feel grief when I bury the men and women I will have to execute for this farce." He looked into Madara's eyes. The special Sharingan, an Eternal Sharingan beyond the Mangekyo shone back at him. "Tell me Madara. Is there a Sharingan one obtains for killing the man you hate with your entire soul?" The words came out in a vicious, hissing voice.

"I don't know. Perhaps I should investigate that. Unfortunately, the only man I ever hated that much died a long time ago. And not by my hands." Madara released the jutsu and they were returned to the real world.

Madara watched as the fox disappeared. "It appears the sealing has been completed. I take it Sasuke was not used. Well, that's okay. As long as the fox was sealed in someone it is safe for now." He turned around and started walking away.

Fugaku yelled after him, "Stay away from my sons! Stay away from Shisui!"

"Or what?" Madara turned around and gave him a big smile. He pulled his gloves and mask out of the pouch on his belt and put them on, then disappeared.

"Or what, indeed." Fugaku echoed in a hollow voice.

The two men re-entered the underground chamber. The Fourth was dead. His body lay a couple feet from his son, who was crying. The two men looked at the man and bowed their heads, speaking silent prayers for his eternal rest. Fugaku knew, though, that the man was now trapped with the death god – such was the payment for sealing a soul.

Hiashi picked the baby up and they both walked over to Sasuke.

"Um. Hiashi? Have you ever changed a diaper?" Fugaku asked as he pulled a diaper out of the bag.

"What? You're the one with two kids. Don't you know?"

"Well, you're wife is pregnant…" He sighed, "Yeah. Neither of us would know something like that would we? I guess if it gets on the kid and stays there until Mikoto can deal with it, it'll have to do. This really stinks. Sorry Sasuke, but it's true." The boy was looked at him and smiling. "How is Naruto?"

"He's fine, it seems. He may not have even gotten anything to eat since he was…" Hiashi stopped. "born" didn't seem to be the right word to use here. Not when you considered what happened.

"We'll get them to Mikoto. She can look after them both until the Third gets back."

There was only one baby harness, so they rigged up a second harness with a blanket and some rope. Both men had babies strapped to their chests, and Fugaku put the diaper bag over his shoulder.

Hiashi started walking toward the stairs, but noticed that Fugaku was holding back. "I'll wait for you outside." He climbed the stairs

Walking over to the Fourth Hokage's body Fugaku sighed. "Sasuke, you owe your life to this man. If Madara had used you, you would have become his tool. He could even have used you to lure Itachi away from us, and Shisui would have followed."

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Mikoto looked up as the door to the room the Uchiha were sequestered in opened. She could see Fugaku standing in front of several men and women. Her heart started beating faster than she ever thought possible as he made his way over to her. She stood up. The room wasn't lit very well and she activated her sharingan and saw…

"Sasuke! You found him! Thank God!" She lifted the baby out of the harness and hugged him close. Kisa came up behind her and gave Fugaku a big smile.

Hiashi walked into the room and made his way to where Fugaku was standing.

"Mikoto, Kisa, could you look after Naruto here for a while? He was Minato and Kushina's son." He lifted the boy out of the makeshift baby harness as Hiashi removed it. Yota stood up and helped him pull off the ropes. Hiashi looked down at the boy, realizing that he had been sitting next to Itachi and smiled at him. Yota was so shocked at receiving attention from his lord that he just bowed, blushing a bright red, then sat back down.

"What do you mean 'was'?" Kisa whispered as she took the baby.

"Kushina was kidnapped by ninja mercenaries hired by Madara. She was killed. Minato is also dead." There was a gasp in the room. Kabuto stood up and started to run. He got about five steps before Hiashi grabbed him.

"My father was her doctor! Where is my father!" Kabuto yelled at the two men. "I have to find him!"

"Just stay here for now." Fugaku gripped the boy's shoulders and maneuvered him next to Kisa. "He wasn't where we found Kushina so he might be okay. But whatever happens he won't want you running around right now. The mercenaries are still running around causing trouble. We need to neutralize them before you can leave."

"But…" Kabuto was panicked.

"If he is alive and you die while trying to find him, how will he feel? Just stay here." He turned around and nodded to Hiashi, who left.

"Everyone sit down." Fugaku said in a stern voice. Everyone sat down as he looked around the room. He then walked to Saiyu and, grabbing her arm pulled her up. "Stand over there." He pointed to the doorway then walked around and pulled out fourteen other clansmen.

The Uchihas that had been pulled out stood at attention near the door. Behind them several masked Anbu put restraints on their hands. Fugaku approached them. "You have been convicted of treason for your part in Madara's attack of the village. Your sentence is execution." Fear showed on the faces of the fourteen men and women, but Saiyu smiled. Fugaku looked at her.

"I go to my death, knowing that I followed the path of my ancestors and never wavered from their true intentions." Saiyu spoke loudly and in a clear voice. She had no regrets. Fugaku noticed that she was looking at the boys sitting around their mothers and…

"You also have Mangekyo?" He said in surprise. He looked at the Anbu. One of them got the message and pulled out a cloth and covered her face. They were quickly led away.

Fugaku turned back to his clan. The faces were a mixture of grief, anger, fear and betrayal. He looked at Itachi, curious as to what emotion he would show. Oddly enough he didn't seem to be paying attention. He was, in fact, holding Naruto and feeding him a bottle of formula while Mikoto fussed with Sasuke's diaper and Kisa dug through the diaper bag. It was absolutely the last thing he ever expected to see the boy do. And he was smiling. But the smile seemed far away, like he was thinking of something else. Sitting next to him, Shisui had the exact same expression on his face.

"Fugaku? You were going to say something?" One of the ninja's who came with him interrupted his thoughts.

"Oh yes. Thanks." He gathered his thoughts together again and addressed the clan. "Don't leave this room until you are told to. It's still dangerous outside." He turned around and left. He had wanted to say more, but he was too unnerved by what he saw on the faces of the two boys. They had seen the power of the Sharingan, and they liked it.

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The big surprise, when Fugaku and Hiashi returned to the front gate, was that the Third was standing there looking like a parent who had come home early to find his home torn apart by a bunch of rowdy teenagers. And he was pissed. And Fugaku felt like the miscreant teenager. Except instead of breaking his mother's favorite vase and recording over his fathers porn videos he burned down every house on the block and ran over the neighbor's dog.

"Fugaku!" The old man yelled. "You have ten minutes to explain what happened, then we have to go back out and kill the rest of the mercenaries." He motioned for Hiashi to re-join the battle so he could talk to Fugaku alone.

After the explanation the Third was less pissed, but also grief-stricken. "I can't believe I was lured away that easily. I'm glad I figured it out and returned, though." He sighed loudly. "Minato told me something was going on with the Uchiha, but this was more than we expected." He sighed again. "We'll talk more later. Please don't tell anyone else what happened tonight."

"Were you south of the village? We got no word from the scouts sent in that direction." Fugaku was still worried about what could be in that location.

"Yes. I commandeered the scouts and ninja squads sent that way. We ran into a small army of about three hundred rain ninja and it took a while to clear them out."

Fugaku blinked. "You took out three hundred ninja with the few squads we deployed?"

"My boy, there is a reason I was made a Hokage. Yes, I am that powerful. Now, let's get back out there and kill the rest of the rain ninja's!" They ran outside the gates and split up, but Fugaku was left wondering why Madara had brought so many ninja with him if he was just going to re-seal the Kyuubi.

"I'll probably never find out." Fugaku said out loud as he surveyed the area from a tree. He suspected that the Uchiha's who were working with him didn't know the full plan either. But he would do his best to find out.

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Madara walked into a clearing in the forest about ninety miles from Konoha. Dawn was approaching and the sky was dark blue instead of black. The finches were waking up and there was sporadic chirping.

"So. It looks like I came all this way for nothing." A woman's voice carried over the clearing as she walked up to Madara.

"So it appears." He sighed.

"What happened?" She was not happy.

"The Kyuubi was sealed in a different child by the Yondaime Hokage. Sasuke was in the same room. If I disturbed the ceremony it could have affected the Kyuubi and hurt Sasuke." Madara looked at the woman in front of him, and she returned his gaze without flinching. She was not a woman who was afraid of power – after all her partner was arguably the most powerful man in the world and she had grown up with him. "Are you upset?" He smiled at her from behind the mask.

"You know I don't like traveling." She sighed. "But as long as I don't have to watch over a baby I guess its okay. This was all _his_ idea anyway. He can be such a control freak sometimes. Are you going to try to take the other child then, instead?"

"No. There is no need to. Besides, he won't be going anywhere. The Yondaime used his own infant son. The process he used for the sealing was different from the one I used before. I need to investigate it more." Madara sat down on the ground and leaned back against a tree. "I did make contact with a couple interesting boys though. I believe I will be recruiting one of them in a few years. The question is, which one?" He gave a short chuckle.

"Sasori of the red sands has joined. He made it known it was against his will, but he will cooperate. Apparently he has a certain amount of respect for anyone who can beat him in a fight and his cooperation is the victor's reward." The woman picked up a pack that was leaning against a tree on the other side of the clearing and put it over her shoulder.

"Hmm. Good. He will be an invaluable asset. There are a few others on my list, a few 'persons of interest', so to speak. I will scout them out and let your partner know which one is next." He leaned his head back against the tree and closed his eyes.

"What about that boy from the Village Hidden in the Stones?"

"Ah yes, him. He's only five years old, so we'll leave him be for now. He has amazing potential though, from what I saw. Such power and intelligence. I'll keep an eye on him, make sure his upbringing is to our advantage. I have a subordinate in the village who has befriended him."

She smiled. She wasn't sure she agreed with Madara's ideals, but his ability to turn a setback into step forward was remarkable.

"I'll pass on what you told me." The woman turned around and jumped into the trees, leaving the masked man alone.

"Itachi, Sasuke and Shisui. The three of you are mine." He gave another short laugh, then relaxed, letting sleep overtake him.

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**Oh! I know why I haven't been getting many reviews, it's because I forgot to say "simon says"! Okay, so. Simon Says review the story. Please? ^^**

**Well, Fugaku has made peace with his own father (of a sort), but what has he got in store for Itachi's future? **

**Are you keeping up with the manga? It's pretty amazing, we're finally getting Itachi's story. Anyways, now that I know how to restore my own vision (I can only see a foot without my glasses) I need to go visit my sister… Of course, I'll have to fight her best friend (who is nearly blind) since she also wants her eyes. Ah forget it. Sounds like work. See you next week!**

**Oh wait – preview. Next week the Third Hokage resumes active duty, the traitors are executed, the dead laid to "rest", and Shisui gets good news while Itachi is left disappointed.**


	14. Chapter 14 Execution

**In the Previous chapter the Kyuubi attacked the village, then was stopped when the Yondaime sealed him in his son, Naruto. Fugaku and Hiashi rescued Naruto and Sasuke. Itachi and Shisui got a first hand view of the power of the Kyuubi and the sharingan…and were impressed (to put it lightly).**

**Thanks for the reviews! I love reading them ^-^**

**Please review. Anonymous reviews are accepted.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 14 – Execution**

Itachi and Shisui stood on the edge of the courtyard behind the Hokage's tower. It was a week after the Kyuubi attack and the traitors were about to be executed. Fugaku and Toshiro had insisted they come so they could see, first hand, how the clan dealt with traitors. Kisa hadn't wanted her son to see, but was overruled when Fugaku walked in on their argument and told Toshiro to bring his son. Mikoto didn't seem to mind. Her face had turned dark and she nodded once, then returned to Sasuke's room where she had been staying since they returned to the house.

The courtyard perimeter was filled with clansmen, but the Konoha elders and council were there also. In the center of the courtyard Twenty-seven mats had been set out evenly spaced in a large square. The traitors were all sitting on their knees with their hands tied in front of them. Some were crying, others had blank faces, and a few were smiling. Fugaku stood in front of them speaking with the Third Hokage, who was, after the death of the Fourth, back in charge of the village.

Itachi was standing stock still with his hands at his side, resisting the urge to fidget. He looked at his cousin. Shisui had been acting weird the last few days. He was quiet and didn't want to talk. His uncles and their sons had been killed, leaving his father as the eldest son – bumping the family from side branch status to a member of the main branch. Itachi was sure it would have made Shisui happy, but instead he didn't seem to care, or was it sorrow over loosing so many close relatives?

A man carrying a box walked into the courtyard and spoke to Fugaku, then stood aside. Fugaku looked at Itachi and Shisui. He had also notice Shisui's odd behavior, but he attributed it to sorrow. Both Kisa and Toshiro had broken down when news of their brothers and nephews deaths had been announced. Of course Shisui would be affected. He noticed Itachi looking around. He almost smiled. The boy noticed everything, and was no doubt memorizing every detail his eyes looked at. He would make a fine ninja.

The Third also looked at the boys. He wasn't sure about the advisability of two small boys watching an execution, but he hoped that Fugaku had reasons other than malice on his mind when he brought them. "Everyone is here now, Fugaku." The old man spoke quietly, then walked a few feet away, closer to the perimeter.

Fugaku motioned to the man holding the box, then spoke in a loud voice. "You will first be given the opportunity to commit ritual suicide. The knives are being passed out now." The man walked down the rows and placed a sharp kunai in front of the kneeling prisoners. "If, at the end of five minutes you are still alive you will be be-headed. Time starts now."

Itachi gasped as he caught -Saiyu's eye. She was smiling at him as she brought the knife up and stabbed upward, underneath her ribcage. She held his gaze as she fell forward and collapsed on the mat. He unconsciously grabbed his cousin's shirt sleeve, but Shisui roughly grabbed his hand and threw it off, stepping away from him a foot.

Itachi felt tears burning in his eyes and rolling down his face, but he didn't understand why. Then he remembered images of Saiyu…giving him candy, his birthday parties, smiling. He sniffed and wiped his eyes. He tried to swallow but it instead a sob escaped his mouth. As if in slow motion, his father turned around and looked at him. Itachi knew what was coming and tried to duck, but Fugaku was quicker. He grabbed the boy and slapped him across the face and hit him across the back of his shoulder blades. He fell to his knees, and quickly bowed his head and touched his forehead to the ground.

"I apologize for my outburst, father." He hoped the words had come out in a strong voice, but he knew his voice had sounded weak. Fugaku turned back into the courtyard and Itachi stood up. Shisui had moved even further from him and the Third was looking at him with no emotion showing on his face.

"Five minutes is up." Fugaku spoke the words loudly and looked over at Toshiro, who had entered the courtyard to pull out the three survivors. They wouldn't, or couldn't stand up and several Anbu walked in to carry them. They were placed in front of Fugaku, who quickly removed their heads with a katana.

Fugaku spoke some more words to the Third then motioned for Itachi to follow him. The boy ran over to his father. As they left the courtyard he looked back at Shisui. His cousin, his best friend in the world was giving him such a look of disgust that he stopped in his tracks and looked back, shocked. Fugaku, sensing his son had stopped walking turned around and followed his son's gaze. He also noted the look Shisui was giving him.

"Humph. It seems your outburst did not go unnoticed, son. Frankly, it was disgusting. Now follow me. We have more to discuss when we get home."

That night Itachi sat on the floor of his bedroom, covered in bruises and a few cuts. Considering what had happened in the past, he felt his father had been lenient. No concussion or broken bones, but sitting wasn't very comfortable. Then again, neither was standing. Fugaku had been embarrassed in front of the Hokage and he was not happy. However, he told Itachi that the apology he gave was more than appropriate and his punishment was lessened because of it.

"Yeah. So what. I still hurt." Itachi said to himself. His mother had intervened, but when she found out what her son had done she got mad herself, and started yelling and hitting him as well. She had no mercy for the people who plotted to remove her precious Sasuke from her.

He kicked the bookcase in front of him and the soccer ball dropped down. Catching it he thought of Obito. When he had first seen Madara he had thought it was Obito. Why was that? Probably a trick of the light. But Kagura was helping Madara and Obito was her son… Picking up a kunai he stabbed the ball repeatedly until it deflated. He then put it on the floor and stabbed it again and again. His father opened the door to see what he was doing, but closed it again a couple seconds later. He kept stabbing it.

Picking up the dead soccer ball he walked over to his dresser and carefully placed it in his sweater drawer. "Maybe I should bury it outside. Obito is buried outside, under a ton of rocks. Maybe I should dig a hole, put it in the hole, then cover it with a bunch of rocks?"

The door opened again and Fugaku looked at his son standing in front of an opened dresser drawer. He was a little disturbed, okay a lot disturbed at his son's behavior. Itachi never threw temper tantrums, but he was a five year old boy so no doubt he was capable of having one.

Itachi met his father's eyes. "Father. I killed the soccer ball. What should I do with it?" The boy's voice held no emotion, and neither did his face.

"Your toys will not be replaced if you throw temper tantrums and break them."

"But Obito is dead. It can't be replaced."

"You should have thought about that first."

"I couldn't stop myself. I just kept stabbing it."

"_Fugaku, I couldn't stop myself, I just kept stabbing her." _Fugaku straightened in shock as he remembered the words of his father when he found him kneeling over the corpse of his mother. His heart started pounding and he looked down at Itachi, who was looking up at him with no visible emotion.

Itachi looked up at his father and saw his fear. After a minute he smiled.

The smile confused Fugaku. What was the boy thinking? How could he go from being sad at the execution, to completely emotionless now? "It's late. Put on your pajamas and go to bed. If you really miss your soccer ball you can buy a new one with your New Years money in a couple months."

Walking out of his son's room Fugaku stopped by a window to look outside. He knew Madara had been training Itachi and Shisui, but he didn't hold it against them. Toshiro didn't know and he wasn't planning on telling him. Madara didn't include them in his recent attack, that was more than obvious. So they must be part of some long-term plan.

"I'll just have to keep my eyes open, and train Itachi to suppress the rest of his emotions. I am incapable of activating the Mangekyo Sharingan and if I train him right, Itachi will loose the ability as well." He spoke out loud, looking at the twinkling stars.

"Do you think it is that easy?" Mikoto answered in a dark voice.

Turning around quickly he looked at his wife. He hadn't heard her approach him. "I have big plans for the boy. He will be our link to the village. That cannot happen if he gets too entrenched in the teachings of our ancestors. Shisui will remain inside the clan, but Itachi is our peace offering to the Hokage. A skilled ninja who will be at his disposal. Emotion is not needed, only obedience and dedication to duty."

"And Sasuke?"

"…can be whatever he wants to be. He is my peace offering to you for taking your first born son from you." Fugaku walked away from her and exited the house.

"Fugaku. You are an idiot. Someday, I hope you get what you deserve." Mikoto walked past Itachi's closed door without even looking at it or reaching out to sense his chakra. Entering Sasuke's nursery she picked him up and laid down on a futon she had moved into the room. Holding him close to her, she fell asleep.

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The next day Itachi met up with Shisui at the lake. Shisui was sitting on a bench and looking out at the water. The sun had come out and the frost was quickly melting off of the grass and rocks.

Itachi sat on the other end of the bench and looked at his friend. Several minutes passed but the boy didn't acknowledge him. Finally Itachi spoke. "Shisui? Are you mad at me? I'm sorry about what happened yesterday. I… I guess I was thinking of Saiyu and…"

"They were weak." Shisui spoke softly, but his voice was firm.

"Huh? What?" Itachi wondered what he was talking about.

"Some of them even had the Mangekyo Sharingan but they didn't use it to escape or overpower the guards. Why is that?"

"Well…"

"Lower your voice. We don't want to be overheard."

"What is the Mangekyo Sharingan?" Itachi spoke in a soft voice to match Shisui's.

Shisui looked up at him. "I only know that it is a technique obtained after the Sharingan. Apparently it is obtained by doing something special, but I don't know what. All I know is that it is massively powerful." He paused, lowering his voice even more. "And I want it."

"Is that what you've been thinking about all this time?"

"One of the things. My father has taken over his brother's position as main branch member and I have to help him because I'm his only son. And my mother isn't feeling well so I've been helping her with the housework." He looked back at the water. Itachi felt he wasn't telling him everything.

"Itachi. You cried for Saiyu. She didn't deserve it. Neither does Kagura. They were weak. Don't ever do it again. Your behavior was embarrassing." Itachi turned his head quickly to look at his cousin. His words hurt worse than his father's and mother's beating the night before. "I see from the bruises that you have paid for what you did. But there are some rumors going around about Kagura that you should know about. No one wants to tell you, but I will because you are my best friend." He didn't say anything for several minutes.

"What are they?" Itachi asked in an almost timid voice. He suddenly felt like he was having a conversation with his father. When did Shisui get so grown up?

"Remember how Kagura would hardly ever give you medicine when you were sick or injured?" Shisui's voice took its normal tone.

"Yeah, she said I was small and it would make me sick."

"The rumors are that she was keeping you sick. If you died, then Obito was to be the head of the clan when Fugaku died or retired."

"That's impossible! She would never do that!" Itachi yelled at his cousin.

"Keep your voice down! I overheard my father telling my mother that Fugaku was suspicious because you have insomnia and it has never been treated."

"Yes, that's true. But she told my mother to take me to a specialist." He paused. "Then a minute later we were both unconscious and Sasuke was kidnapped. But, I hardly ever get sick."

"Yeah, that's true. Neither of us do. I imagine that must have been very frustrating for her." His voice was bitter.

"Boys!" They looked up and saw Toshiro standing on the road and motioning for them to join him. They ran over to him. "Fugaku wants to speak with you." Itachi and Shisui looked at each other and followed Toshiro.

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Entering the meeting room the Itachi, Shisui and Toshiro sat down on mats in front of Fugaku.

"I have spoken to the Third Hokage and the Headmaster of the Academy and both agree that it would be best if there was no Uchiha presence in the Academy for the next six months."

"Huh? Why!" Itachi yelled in frustration and Shisui ground his teeth trying to keep his mouth shut.

Fugaku sighed. "Uchiha are not…welcome…at the moment. The parents of the other students have complained about the safety of their children. There have also been attacks on some of the clan members who have ventured out of the compound for shopping or other errands. This morning the compound's front gate was graffitied. The Third has guaranteed me that at the end of six months, _no matter what_ you two will be re-enrolled at the academy." He paused for a couple minutes. "I'm not happy about this. However, I also know that you two are very advanced for your ages and I expect that this delay will not result in a set back. In fact, if it does I will be very disappointed."

"As will I." Toshiro interjected sternly, looking down at his son. Itachi and Shisui nodded.

"That is all I have to say, you can go now. I need to return to the police station." Everyone stood up and turned to leave, but Shisui held back.

"Lord Fugaku? May I speak with you for a minute?" Shisui looked up at the man.

"Is it short?" Fugaku was a little surprised, considering Shisui was usually afraid of him.

"Very short."

"Okay. Toshiro, I'll meet you out front." Fugaku closed the meeting room door. "What is on your mind, Shisui? You know there is nothing that can be done about the six months."

"I…I signed up to take the genin exam. It's in two days. I wanted it to be surprise for my parents. I've been practicing really hard and I really want to take it. Can you perhaps ask permission? It's not really going to school – it's graduating." Shisui looked Fugaku in the eyes as he spoke.

"Hmm. I will ask and let you know. You are in luck, in a way, there is a shortage of shinobi and the possibility of getting one more genin might influence their decision."

"Thank-you." Shisui bowed and they exited the meeting room.

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Two days later Shisui snuck out of his house and made his way to the Academy. Entering the building he walked to the bulletin board and read the exam announcement to find out what room to go to.

"Shisui, what are you doing here?" Kabuto and Yota walked up to him. "Are you taking the exam? I saw you reading the bulletin board."

"I thought the Uchiha has been banned from the building." Yota commented.

"I was allowed to come back and take the exam. How are you doing, Kabuto? Is your father okay?" Shisui had heard that Kabuto's father was found unconscious and had been in a coma.

"Yeah, he woke up a couple days ago and was discharged this morning. But he still has to work." Kabuto had a big smile on his face.

"So you're hanging out with this guy instead of your bully friends?" Shisui smiled and pointed at Kabuto as he spoke.

"Yeah." Yota gave an embarrassed laugh. "They were arrested a month ago for breaking and entering and vandalism. They broke into a porn shop and destroyed a bunch of stuff. They were permanently expelled from school. If I was still hanging with them, I would have been there too. But I'm spending so much time training and studying now that I don't have time for them anymore. I really lucked out."

"Wow. Bet you thought you'd never be glad about being beat up, huh?" Shisui gave him a big smile.

"Well, go take your test. I hope you pass." Yota returned the smile.

"Yeah, good luck." Kabuto patted him on the shoulder.

Entering the exam room a few minutes later the headmaster motioned for Shisui to take a seat in the front row. He turned around and noticed that the room was packed. There must have been forty or fifty students, at least. It was going to be a long day.

The written exam was fairly easy, Shisui thought. It had consisted of some math, history, logic, and regulation questions. He was pretty sure he got them all right. The application part of the test was now in progress, and everyone was sitting around waiting for their names to be called. He watched the current examinee standing at the front of the room trying to create a shadow clone. He failed. Actually, almost everyone was failing. Shisui knew this would be the case. A lot of people took the exam every time it was offered to "get experience" so that when they took it for real they would pass. Yeah, right. He laughed a little. They were taking it until they passed, because they kept failing.

"Shisui Uchiha." He stood up when he heard his name called.

The headmaster looked at him, and noted that the boy returned his gaze without looking away. "Good. You are an Uchiha, not many students will look me in the eye. Now, produce five shadow clones of yourself, then produce three shadow clones of the Third Hokage."

Shisui sighed and cleared his head. He performed the hand signs then watched as five shadow clones, direct copies of himself appeared in front of him. When the headmaster nodded his head, the boy dispelled them, then repeated the process to create three shadow clones of the Third.

"Very good. Excellent. Have you obtained the Sharingan yet? I know you are still young."

"No sir." Shisui shook his head.

"Do you have any advanced skills?"

"Yes. May I show you? I can do the transportation jutsu."

The headmaster and the other two teachers sitting next to him reacted to that.

"You can do that? Yes, please demonstrate."

Shisui performed the hand signs and moved four feet from where he had been standing. A large smile appeared on his face, in spite of his brain telling him he should look serious. There was surprised muttering from the other kids in the room.

"Holy shit, kid. You are the youngest person I have ever seen do that successfully." The headmaster was shaking his head in disbelief.

"My five year old cousin can do it too."

"Itachi?"

"Yeah."

"Wow. I'm really glad about that. I'm always happy to see quality shinobi at my Academy. Well, come over here and get your headband. You pass, my boy!" He wrapped the headband around Shisui's head and tied it for him. Come back here tomorrow at eight am for your team assignment."

Shisui bowed to the headmaster and the teachers. "Thank you very much for letting me come today! I'll be a great ninja!"

Running out of the building he made a beeline for the police station. He wanted to show his father, and thank Fugaku for letting him take the test. Entering the station he ran up to the front desk and asked to see Toshiro.

The man at the desk looked down at the boy, saw the brand new headband, and smiled. "He's in back. Come on, I'll sneak you in."

Needless to say, news spread fast and within a few hours the entire clan knew that there was one more ninja in the family. That weekend the boy went off with his new team on his very first mission. Cleaning out an old barn on a farm. Never before had anyone been so happy to shovel manure.

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Itachi and his father were sitting on the ground resting. It was evening and they had just finished a session of Taijutsu training. It was cold out, November had started and an early snow was forecast for the following day. Clouds were drifting over the dark sky, occasionally revealing stars.

"Itachi. Close your eyes and smell the air." Fugaku looked down at his son as he did what he was told. "What does it smell like?"

"Kind of like the ice maker in the freezer, only fresher."

"That is an early indication of snow. Memorize that scent. All weather has a certain smell. If you are away from pollution, you can clearly pick it up and, to some degree, predict the weather. From now on try to smell the air."

"Yes father." He kept his eyes closed, concentrating on the scents carried over on the breeze. "Father?"

"Yes?"

"I just thought. Was there a funeral for all the people who died?"

Fugaku blinked. "The Third did not want us attending the funeral for the Fourth, or for the other villagers. Like I said a week or so ago, the villagers are not happy with us now. The traitors were cremated and buried in a common grave in our clan cemetery. The loyal Uchiha ninja were buried in a private ceremony, but Mikoto couldn't bring herself to go so you stayed here with her."

"Sounds like a lame excuse." Itachi still had his eyes closed.

The clan lord sighed. "Itachi, the truth is you have trouble controlling your emotions. You move between emotionless and tears. You seem to have nothing in between. You need to loose the tears and remove your emotions. If you do not feel want or hate or jealousy or sorrow you will be able to become a true ninja. You will have power over those who do have emotion. Until you show more control it will be difficult to have you attend official functions."

"Yes father. I will try."

"Your position, in the future, will be as a ninja for the village under the command of the Third Hokage. Or whatever Hokage is in power. But you will also attend to missions for the clan. You will have to deal with divided loyalties and know when to choose one over the other. These decisions must be made without emotion."

"Yes father."

"Itachi, listen well. Emotion leads to hate, and hate leads to war."

"But without war, how can we become powerful?"

"With war, how can you survive long enough to enjoy your power?" Fugaku looked up at the stars. "It's a circular argument, son. But the fact is, if there was no war Obito would still be alive, as would your grandparents. The traitors would still be loyal and alive. The little boy we rescued, Naruto, would still have parents."

Itachi looked up at his father and thought over his words. He silently wished that Madara would come back so he could ask him what he thought of emotion. The masked man showed emotion and was often cheerful, but when he was mad it was different from his father. More controlled, but much more deadly. He sighed. It didn't matter. He would have to follow his father's instructions and govern his emotions. He felt like he was living a double life. He could be himself around Madara, but around his father he had to be the perfect son.

"Itachi?" Mikoto yelled out the window. "It's late, come in now."

Itachi looked up at his father, confused.

"She's a little paranoid about having you and Sasuke out of her sight right now. Give it a couple months and she should get over it. You might want to curtail your late night visits to the lake for a while, or be more stealthy about it anyway." Fugaku and Itachi stood up and walked into the house.

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"Where are we going, Shisui?" Itachi was running through the woods, following his older cousin. He had returned from his first mission a few hours earlier and insisted that they train after dinner. Considering the fact that it was now November, and there was about three inches of cold snow on the ground, Itachi thought the decision was a little off. Surely they could have come out in the morning when the sun was up.

"Just a little farther, cousin." Shisui laughed at him. Itachi smiled and ran faster.

Running in a small clearing they stopped and panted as they tried to catch their breath.

"Ah! There they are, my two boys." A tall man walked into the clearing and clapped his hands together once as he spoke. "How have you been?"

"Madara!" Itachi felt a surge of relief at seeing his teacher.

"He saw me for a few seconds during my mission and told me to bring you here when I got back." Shisui explained.

"Oh. So you know that Shisui's a ninja now?"

"Yes, I'm very proud of him. I am glad my training helped him advance so much in such a short time."

"So are you back to train us some more?" Shisui asked eagerly.

Madara laughed inwardly at the boys' enthusiasm. They were great kids, really. He enjoyed spending time with them. Actually, he enjoyed teaching, period. It had annoyed him no end when the First Hokage, a man he thought to be his friend, had questioned his teaching methods. The Shodaime did not understand what it took to produce high quality, powerful shinobi. Madara did. He understood perfectly. And every one of the students he had ever taught understood as well. They eagerly embraced his lessons, completing all of them willingly. Even the final exam was met without trepidation. And now he had two new students. Three really, if he counted the one in Stone, but while that boy was being taught by a subordinate the lessons were still his. After all he wasn't an Uchiha and the two in front of him now, were.

"I shall be able to occasionally provide lessons. I will be able to contact you with these bracelets. Let me see your left wrists." He slipped the bracelets over their wrists then performed a jutsu. The bracelets glowed blue for a second then went back to normal.

Itachi looked at his. It was a silver chain with no embellishments. It also had no clasp. "Does it come off? What was the jutsu you put on it?"

"The jutsu is not detectable, in any way shape or form. It will allow me to contact you via psychic link." Madara knelt down so he would be at the boys' level.

Itachi frowned. "I thought you could already do that."

"Ah! I was using a clone to speak to you. With these bracelets I can be five hundred miles away and still speak with you. And you can answer. You can also call me directly if something comes up. But only important things." He was amused at the boys' reactions. They were curiously looking at each chain in their new jewelry to see if there was something different about it. "Also, it is possible, although unlikely, that another man may contact you. If he does it is because something has happened to me. Do what he says."

"Who is he, so we know it is him?" Shisui was serious.

"Call him 'Leader'. Too much information is not necessarily a good thing right now."

"He is your leader?" Itachi found it hard to imagine the man in front of him following orders.

Madara laughed and re-adjusted his orange and black mask. "No, not quite. He follows my orders. You don't need to know specifics right now. However, it could be said that he is my 'second', although we walk separate paths." He laughed again at confused faces in front of him. "Don't worry about it. Just follow his orders if he contacts you."

"Okay." Both boys smiled again.

"And if anyone asks, Shisui bought the bracelets during his mission. Call them 'friendship bracelets' and no one will question you." Madara leaned back and sat on the ground. "Now let's practice communicating with them so you can get used to it. Hearing a voice in your head is a little odd at first."

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Walking back to the compound the boys were in high spirits. They were glad Madara was back. But Itachi was feeling better, also. He had been having a rough time of it since the Kyuubi attack. His mother was being possessive, his father was lecturing him a lot, and being kicked out of school for six months was not helping is mood any. But with Shisui going on missions and Madara offering to train him some more, things were finally looking up again.

Itachi looked at his cousin, who was still smiling. But he saw something in Shisui's eye's that didn't seem to match the smile on his lips.

"What's wrong Shisui?" Itachi asked in good humor.

"Huh? Oh, nothing. I'm really tired, though. I still need to do some things for my mother tonight before I go to bed."

"Is she still sick?"

Shisui's smile turned into a frown. "Yeah. She's not taking the deaths of her brother and father's brother and son's very well. Also Kagura's betrayal may have been the worst of it. They were like sisters growing up. Father said she'll be fine, it'll just take a few months, maybe."

"Oh." Itachi couldn't think of anything else to say. "Do you…do you think Obito may have been involved before he died?"

Shisui dropped his voice to a whisper. "Itachi, a couple times when I've seen Madara I could have sworn I saw Obito instead."

Itachi stopped walking and gave his cousin a very intense gaze. "Me too!" he whispered back.

"Itachi, did you know that when the hunter nin's went back to retrieve Obito's body, it was no longer under the rocks? They even brought Kakashi, Rin and the Fourth to help look. They couldn't find even an ear. Father said the Rock ninja probably took it so they could attempt to dissect the Uchiha Kekkei Genkai. Konoha spies say that ten ninja bodies from that battle turned up in the Rock village a few weeks later, but they weren't able to determine names."

Shisui paused and looked at his cousin's shocked expression. "There is also a jutsu that allows you to transfer souls from one body to another. It's forbidden of course, and I heard it comes at great cost. That guy Orochimaru is rumored to be studying a way to do it with less cost. I have to say, though, that I do not believe Madara is using any body other than his own."

"Why?" Itachi and Shisui were now whispering so quietly that had to stand with their heads an inch apart to hear each other.

"I suspect the Sharingan is involved. I don't know why I think that. But it seems to be all powerful. Imagine, Itachi, what you and I will be able to do when we get it. When we reach our mentor's level."

Itachi stepped back and looked at Shisui's face. He was smiling again, and his eyes were shining brightly. If, at this exact moment in time, there had been a mirror set in front of him, Itachi would have seen the exact same expression on his face too. But while Shisui dreamed of conquest and standing supreme over a vanquished army, Itachi's mind was stuck in dreams of battle – fighting and winning, and fighting some more.

The boys walked home in cheerful silence as two shadows watched them from afar. "That was almost too easy." One of them said. "Are all the members of your clan this greedy?" The second shadow nodded his head once and smirked, his red eye glinting once as a small amount of light bounced off of it before he disappeared a second later.

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**That's all for this week. Remember, updates every Friday.**

**Please review, anonymous accepted.**

**Next week – We move forward a few months as Itachi turns six. And, what's this about Itachi helping the police catch a criminal?**


	15. Chapter 15 Bait

**In the previous chapter: Itachi learned the consequences of pity as Fugaku continued to drill his emotionless ideals into Itachi, Shisui became a Genin, and Madara returned for a short visit and gave the two boys bracelets that use a jutsu to allow two way communication.**

**Thanks for the reviews! I love reading them **

**Please review. Anonymous reviews are accepted.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 15 – Bait**

"So how long are you going to be gone?" Itachi and Shisui were sitting on the ground a couple feet from the lake. The young genin had learned a couple hours earlier that he and his team would be send on a mission to retrieve information from several drop points throughout the eastern half of Fire country.

"Three weeks!" Shisui answered with a big smile.

"Wow. You are so lucky. What do your parents think?" Itachi returned his cousins smile. He was going to miss having someone to train with, but he was happy for Shisui.

"Father is very happy, you know him, he can't get over the fact that I'm only eight years old and already a genin. Mother is upset though. You know we are still at war and she worries that we may run into enemy ninja since it's a borderline B/C rank mission. She only wants me to only go on D rank." Shisui stared out at the water as he talked. It was now April, and his mother was feeling better, but she had started to worry about loosing her son. The last mission he was away on she had suffered from constant nightmares.

"So why don't they have more experienced teams do it then?" Itachi started throwing rocks at the water.

"We are at war, Itachi, there are no other teams. A lot of ninja were killed in the Kyuubi attack, not to mention other battles and skirmishes over the years. We even went on a mission with Kakashi a couple months ago because our sensei had to go on an A rank mission and we couldn't postpone our C rank mission until he got back." Shisui started throwing rocks too, hitting Itachi's in mid-air. "Father said to ignore mother and work hard. He said she is his problem and not mine. They are going to a counselor at the hospital twice a week and I think it's helping. At least, she didn't break out crying when I told her I'd be gone for so long. At least not in front of me. She might be now, though." He stopped throwing the rocks and frowned. "How about your mother, how is she doing?"

Itachi was taken aback by the question. "I don't know. She doesn't talk to me much anymore. She spends all her time with Sasuke. I guess everything is fine."

"She seems to be ignoring you." Shisui was blunt.

"Is she?" He thought hard about what his cousin said. "I guess… I have been studying to keep up with my class and going to the temple to play Go and Shogi with the elders. And training with father in the evenings. I only see her at breakfast when she cooks for all of us, then I fix my own lunch. Oh, and she fixes us all dinner. But…" He thought hard for a moment. "I don't remember talking to her for a few days."

Shisui looked squarely at Itachi then dropped his gaze. He had heard rumors from other clan members that Fugaku and Mikoto were not getting along and this seemed to prove it. However, he realized that asking more questions could get himself and maybe even Itachi in trouble. He changed the subject.

"So you return to school in the morning?"

"Yes! I can hardly wait. I have to go in the morning and my teacher is going to make me take a test to see if I can return to the same classes. I've only had three months of school so far. The elders said the academy may close down again for a few months so the teachers can join the war effort. I hope not. I want to take the genin exam when I am seven, and since I am six now that isn't too far away."

"With all the studying and training you are doing you'll probably make it whether the academy is open or not." Shisui smirked. "You're a genius, Itachi, you really are."

"Well, you must be then, too. You're better than me at a lot of things. You also always seem to know what's going on." Itachi was serious.

Shisui laughed. "I work hard. I also seem to have a knack for the transportation jutsu. My sensei is making me try new things with it. He said I should make it my signature move." Turning to look at Itachi he turned serious. "I don't want to get you in trouble with Lord Fugaku, but perhaps if you asked him more questions you would get more information. It seems like hanging out with the elders has helped a lot, but shouldn't he be the one telling you stuff?"

Itachi sighed. "I don't know. I'll try once and see how he reacts." He remembered back to when he was initiated as the clan heir. The ancient elder had told his father to teach him everything. But the young boy felt like he hadn't been taught anything. Except Taijutsu. Madara had done ten times more than his own father. "I wonder what is going on." Itachi said out loud.

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The next morning Itachi walked with Shisui to the village gate to meet his team. He was surprised to find out that his teammates were older than him. Both were twelve years old. He mentioned his surprise.

"That's actually turning into a good cover, Itachi." Shisui's sensei spoke up. "I'm in my late thirties so it looks like a father out with his kids when we travel."

Itachi smiled. "Wow."

"They even argue like real siblings sometimes." The man laughed at his team as the genin looked at the ground smiling sheepishly.

They said their goodbyes and Itachi walked to the academy in high spirits. Arriving a few minutes later he made his way to his old classroom, happy to see that it was still there. Well, there wasn't much of a chance it would have run off, but still he felt a sense of relief as he walked into the room.

"Good morning Chisako sensei!" Itachi gave her a big smile.

"Itachi! I'm so glad to have you back. I hear from your father that you were very diligent in your studies. I'll escort you down to the headmaster's office and you can take some written tests. Then we'll see were you stand in relation to the rest of the class." They walked back into the hall and made their way to the other end of the building.

Chisako continued to talk in a cheerful voice. "Of course, the only class you couldn't study for would be the 'boy classes' – you know, the classes where you learn how to act like a non-ninja so you can go on undercover missions. But we are going to let you carry on in those classes with the rest of the class and see if you can keep up. You are a very bright, observant boy so we are taking a gamble for a couple weeks. If you can't keep up we will move you to a different class for that subject. But don't feel bad if you do need to be moved. It's just one class but it is a very, very important class that can't really be learned out of a book." She finally paused to catch her breath.

Itachi waited a few seconds and when she didn't start talking again he gave her his assurances that he would do his best to keep up.

Five hours later Itachi finally finished his exams. It turned out that instead of a "summary" test, he had been obligated to take every exam Chisako-sensei had given in the last six months. He put his head down on the desk. It suddenly felt like a bag of bricks had been put on it.

"I take it that means you have finished." The Headmaster laughed at him as he collected the papers and removed the pencil from Itachi's hand. "You can go home now. We'll have these graded by morning."

Itachi slowly lifted his head and sighed. "Thank-you Motoya sensei." He stood up and bowed to the older man and left.

Leaving the school building Itachi made his way to the training area. Yota and Kabuto were already there, and they greeted him cheerfully.

"Why are there no other people here today?" Itachi looked around and the place was empty.

"A couple of the classes are meeting in the woods for training today, but I don't know where everyone else is." Yota spoke as he resumed throwing kunai at his target.

Itachi removed his throwing stars from his backpack and began his own practice. "I've never seen you down here before, Kabuto."

"No. I usually go the hospital and follow father around. He's teaching me medical ninjutsu, but I heard you were back today so I asked him if I could stay late and see you." The young medic-nin wanna-be was not doing so well with his kunai. He was hitting the target, but only in the outer circles.

Itachi smirked. "You are trying very hard not to hit the center, Kabuto."

Kabuto's smile faded instantly and he looked at the younger boy. A glint of silver caught his eye. "What is that on your wrist?" He grabbed the boys arm and pulled up his shirt sleeve. He frowned as he looked at the plain silver bracelet. Yota turned around and tried to figure out why his friend's mood changed so suddenly.

Itachi had a sudden urge to wrench his arm free and stand back from the white-haired boy, but instead he held his ground. And stared. Kabuto had a gold bracelet exactly like his.

"_Don't tell anyone what this is."_

Madara's words came back to him. But why did Kabuto have the same bracelet? Was Madara training him also? If he was, why didn't he say anything?

"Um. Shisui brought back two of them when he went on one of his missions. They are friendship bracelets." Itachi continued to stare at Kabuto's wrist. "Where…where did you get yours?"

"I…it was on me when I was found at Kikyou pass. I truly do not remember when I got it." Kabuto was doing some fast thinking. He shouldn't have brought attention to his bracelet. If "He" found out… The boy shuddered inwardly at what might happen, fear gripping his heart. "Um…maybe you can ask Shisui tonight where he bought it? I mean what town? Maybe that is where I came from, or something." He released Itachi's hand and resumed his usual smile.

"Oh. Sure. Except Shisui left this morning on a three week mission so you'll have to wait." Itachi turned around to face his target again. "Kabuto, this time, try to hit the target properly." He sensed the boy's unease again. "Or do a better job of trying to miss it."

Kabuto blinked a couple times, then lowered his head. "Yes."

Yota kept a straight face, but inside he was shaking his head. He knew Kabuto was an odd sort, and wondered why the seven year old boy wanted to hang out with him, but ultimately he didn't really care. He was here to train so he could beat Itachi. Nothing else really mattered much. As long as the kid didn't get in the way he could hang out with him as much as he wanted.

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The young boy sat on his bed with his legs folded underneath him. No one else was in the house, and wouldn't be for many more hours. He formed several hand signs then concentrated his chakra on contacting his master. The bracelet glowed lightly.

"Child. Why are you contacting me? You are trying my patience." The deep, scratchy voice echoed in Kabuto's head.

Kabuto pushed back the fear that was threatening to overwhelm him. His master may be miles away, but he could still punish him. Painfully.

"Master. There is another boy in my class at school with a silver bracelet like mine. I was wondering…why…" His voice faded at the end of the sentence.

"Hmm. The Uchiha boy I asked you to keep an eye on." There was a deep sigh. "I suppose I should have contacted you earlier. The terms of my employment have been slightly altered since we last spoke. I do not have a use for you at this point in time."

"So I'm free?" Kabuto interrupted quickly.

"No! Of course not. I never waste a good spy. You, boy, are among the best. If you weren't, I would use for something else."

Kabuto shuddered. He knew what that "something else" was. "So why did you give a bracelet to Itachi and Shisui?"

"Ah! So both Uchiha brats have bracelets. Interesting. For your information I did not give them. I did, however, provide the technology to my new employer. He must have distributed them. Maybe even improved them. He is quite brilliant."

There was silence for a minute as Kabuto tried to digest what he was just told.

"Keep an eye on Itachi. Remain on good terms with him. Have you made contact with a second boy we can recruit?"

Kabuto felt as if his stomach had just fallen ten stories. "Y…Yes. But, do we…do we really need him?"

"Ha ha ha. Brat, are you going soft on me? After all the things you have done? Don't make me laugh. If it makes you feel better, I may not need him, with the two Uchiha boys available, there may be sufficient resources. However, keep the other boy close to you as well. As a spare." The man cut the communication.

The young boy layed down on his bed, wiping his eyes as the tears ran freely. He wasn't sure what he had done. He didn't remember. Obviously it was something bad. He turned over on his side, drew his legs up to his body and waited. He knew his master was mad at him. He was always in such a bad mood. Suddenly it came. The intense pain. His entire body was wracked with spasms and something akin to electricity jolted through him. He lowered his head until it touched his knees. It took all his willpower, but he didn't cry out. After a couple minutes the pain ceased and Kabuto crawled under his covers and cried himself to sleep.

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"Class, settle down." It was a week later, and Itachi was now back in all his old classes, having received a hundred percent on all his tests. A new day was starting and all the students ran to their seats when the teacher entered the room.

Chisako sensei took a seat at her desk and waited for everyone to calm down. "Students, I have something very important to pass on to you. You may or may not have heard that two children, five and six years old were found dead recently." The room, which usually had the sound of tapping pencils and fidgeting children suddenly went so quiet you could hear a pin drop. "They were last seen in the company of a strange man. Now I want to pass down some rules for you. You should already know them, but we want to repeat them again."

Several minutes later the class was well versed in how to protect themselves from strangers. And the fact that even with all that new information, the stranger may still be able to capture them. It was a world full of ninja's after all. Oddly enough, a lot of the kids didn't feel very safe.

"Was it Orochimaru?" A girl in the back row asked quietly.

"No. They are certain it was not." Itachi looked at Chisako sensei as she answered the question. He had the feeling there was something else.

"Was the same guy who killed that little girl before?" Itachi spoke up.

Chisako's face went white. She knew the boy was smart, but really, that kidnapping happened a few years ago. "That is being investigated, but probably not." She didn't want to scare the other children. After all, that girl had been lured away from the school grounds.

Itachi sensed the lie and looked the teacher directly in the eyes. She looked straight back at him with a stern look. He got the message. Keep your mouth shut. He nodded his head once to show he understood and she looked away.

Returning to their lessons, the day dragged on as usual. About an hour before dismissal a message came for Itachi, asking him to go to the police station to see his father after school.

"Maybe he found out you robbed the bank and wants to arrest you." Kabuto teased him and Itachi laughed lightly.

"Nah, I'll say Shisui did it. He's not here to defend himself." Both boys laughed.

Arriving at the police station the man holding down the reception desk quickly escorted him to a conference room. It was large, with one long table. The man told Itachi to sit at one corner near where the chief would sit. He then gave the boy a soda and packet of cookies and told him to wait for a few minutes and the others would join him shortly.

Itachi opened the cookies and discovered they were chocolate chip, and the soda was orange. An excellent combination, he thought to himself as he started snacking. He discovered he was very hungry.

The doors to the conference room opened fifteen minutes later and several Uchiha clansmen included his father and Toshiro entered the room and sat down.

"Itachi. I trust your day went well. Did your teacher lecture the class on the inadvisability of associating with strangers?" Fugaku was very business-like and Itachi answered in the same tone of voice.

"My day was satisfactory, father. Chisako sensei did indeed instruct us on the negative impact of associating with unknown elements."

Fugaku blinked his eyes and coughed. Where did this boy learn to talk like that? He noticed Toshiro and several other clansmen trying to stifle their laughs. 'Oh'. He said to himself. 'From me.' He felt a little bit of pride in his son's mimicry.

"Well, son, I would like you to help us catch the man who is kidnapping the children." He looked at the small boy seated next to him. On the one hand he looked like an innocent little kid, small for his age, and quite adorable. On the other hand, how many seven year old boys were capable of eating a cookie without leaving crumbs or drinking a can of soda without spilling it on the table or themselves. He continued to watch as Itachi finished his cookie then neatly folded his paper napkin and placed it inside the empty cookie packet.

"Of course I will help. But what can I do? I haven't even graduated yet."

"You will be the bait. When he tries to kidnap you we will capture him. It sounds simple, but it is quite dangerous. Itachi, what is the range of your transportation jutsu?"

"Um. I can go from the park bench to the first picnic table."

"About twenty feet, then." Fugaku knew his son was talking about the lake. "Not bad. How many times can you perform the jutsu consecutively?"

"Twenty feet? I've never tried it that way. It couldn't be hard though, could it? I've done three feet several times in a row and it was easy."

"Hmm. Let's get you outside later and see if you can get close to five times in a row, twenty feet at a time. There is a big difference between twenty feet and three feet. It's not as easy as it sounds."

"Okay." Itachi started swinging his feet, then quickly stopped. No one else was fidgeting and he didn't want to stand out too much.

"Itachi, you need to pay attention and do exactly what we tell you to do. We have been over this plan several times today and while we feel it will work, the kidnapper may have a few tricks up his sleeve that could put you in danger. The first thing is that you tell absolutely no one that you are helping us. Word tends to travel fast and we don't want the kidnapper to get wind of our scheme."

"Yes father." The boy was getting excited. He was going to get to help his father on a real police case. And they were all depending on him. He could show them how great he was and make his father proud.

"In two days you will come here after school instead of going home. You will change your clothes to look like a civilian five year old boy. You will then wander around certain neighborhoods, with a detachment of policemen following nearby, until the kidnapper makes contact. It's possible that this will take several days."

"Okay. I learned how to act like a civilian in school."

An hour later Itachi was dismissed and asked to wait for his father at the lake before going home. The evening sun was still a couple hours from setting over the hills when Fugaku finally showed up. Itachi had passed the time by practicing his Taijutsu moves.

"Itachi. Go to the other side of the field and, in twenty foot length use the transportation jutsu five times. If you can't do it then do as many as you can. It takes a lot of chakra and young children generally do not have as much chakra as teenagers or adults so it might be an issue of chakra rather than ability holding you back right now." Fugaku sat down on the park bench as Itachi ran to a goal post on the field.

Itachi wondered how long the field was. He had been told it was not a regulation length soccer field, it was smaller. Clearing his mind, he performed the hand seals and moved the first twenty feet. He felt his chakra strength and decided it really was a little lower. He did a second time, then a third time. He could feel his chakra was starting to get very low. The fourth time left him out of breath, and the fifth time he bent over and put his hands on his knees to hold himself up. He suddenly felt very dizzy.

A shadow appeared to his right and Itachi threw himself on the ground and rolled away, quickly getting back up and crouching. He saw his father standing where he had been a second ago.

"Very good, Itachi. You did not let your guard down. And you are able to do five transportation jutsu's in a row. Tomorrow we will meet here again after dinner and try it one after another in quick succession. You may need this jutsu to escape when we are ready to close in for the arrest. Now let's get something to eat."

Itachi looked down at the ground as he stood up.

"What's wrong?" Fugaku frowned.

"Escape. I don't want to run away."

Fugaku sighed. "As much as I hate to admit it, sometimes running away is the only alternative. There are many reasons for that, but there are two very good ones that you should remember. The first is to regroup and attack later with a better strategy, and the second is if a teammate is better suited to your opponent than you are you should withdraw and let him take over. In this case it is the latter. No one in the clan is going to think any less of you for it in this case. In fact, it is the whole purpose of teamwork. You must always work with your team. Ninja missions are rarely solo. I guess you must understand that to some extent, you got top scores on your teamwork at the Academy." He noticed that Itachi straightened up and smiled a little bit.

"Yes, you are right. I guess I've got a lot to learn." The boys smile grew and he looked up at his father.

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"I was wondering when you two were going to show up." Mikoto gave Fugaku and Itachi a weak smile as they walked into the kitchen and sat down.

"We were training." Itachi explained as he started eating.

"He going to help us with a police case and I wanted to see how quickly he could get away if the occasion calls for it.

Mikoto looked at her husband in shock. "Get away? Is this going to be dangerous? Fugaku! He hasn't even graduated. You can't have him doing dangerous things yet!" Her voice got louder and louder as she yelled at her husband.

Itachi started to eat faster so he could finish his food and leave the room. Sasuke, who was sitting in his high chair next to Itachi and testing his voice box with various in-human noises suddenly went quiet and frowned.

"Mikoto calm down. We will be there with him. Everything will be fine." Fugaku's voice was normal as he continued to shovel food in his mouth.

"Oh really. And what case is he helping you with?" She stood in front of the table with her hand on her hips and stared down her husband.

Itachi's eyes went wide and inside his mind he kept repeating 'Don't answer. Don't answer'.

"The kidnapping case." Fugaku answered as he returned his wife's gaze.

"Idiot." Itachi mumbled under his breath. No one heard him though, except perhaps Sasuke who suddenly turned to look at his big brother.

"And what the hell is a six year old boy going to do?" She was yelling full volume now.

"Bait." Fugaku and Mikoto both enabled their sharingan's simultaneously.

"Bait! Fugaku Uchiha what has gotten into that small brain of yours!"

Bam! The noise shocked the two boys as Fugaku slammed his wife into the wall and held her there as he punched her in the stomach and then the face. She struggled to free herself as she continued to curse him.

Itachi instantly felt his stomach clench in fear as he saw blood coming out of his mother's mouth and cuts appear on her face. He grabbed Sasuke and ran out into the hall and into the entryway. He put on his shoes and prepared to run, but hesitated when he heard his fathers voice. Keeping his shoes on, he walked back down the hallway and pressed his back against the wall a couple feet from the kitchen door.

"Itachi is no longer any of your concern." Fugaku's voice was ominous. Itachi shuddered.

"If you hurt him I will make it my concern." Mikoto spoke using the same tone.

"Mikoto. Listen carefully. If you continue to question the way _I_ am raising Itachi, my heir, I will petition the elders to have a chakra inhibiter placed on you so you can perform you job. You remember what your job is, don't you?"

Itachi could hear his mother struggling again and his father slapped her. Itachi cringed and hugged Sasuke closer to his chest.

"Stop that! Your job, since you need reminding, is to be the wife of the head of the Uchiha clan. Part of that duty is to raise the children _until their sixth birthday_. Do I need to remind you how old Itachi is? He is no longer your concern. If you do not shape up I can have you removed from your position and find another woman to raise Sasuke until his sixth birthday. If I do that you will not be allowed to have any contact _whatsoever_ with either boy. Ever. Do I make myself understood?" Itachi heard another bang that sounded like someone's head being slammed against the wall.

"You can't fire me if I quit!" Mikoto hissed at her husband.

Itachi heard something heavy land on the floor and hoped his mother had fallen instead of being thrown.

"You have one week to decide." Fugaku walked out of the kitchen and into the hall, stopping to look into his son's eyes. "Come with me Itachi."

"Should I put Sasuke in his crib?" Itachi kept his voice even as he questioned his father.

Fugaku seemed to think it over for a moment then, "No. Bring him."

The three of them made their way out of the Uchiha compound, out the front gates of the Konoha village and into the forest. Thirty minutes later Fugaku stopped walking. The sun had set and the brightest stars were starting to show in the dark blue sky. Fugaku continued to stand in one spot with his back turned to his children. Itachi finally sat down so it would be easier to hold his brother. Sasuke had fallen asleep during the walk, and truth be told, Itachi was starting to feel sleepy too.

'Why is father like this? He was in such a good mood earlier.' Itachi's mind was on overload. 'He said things on purpose to make mother mad. Does he want her to leave?' Thoughts of divorce crept into Itachi's head. His mother was always so nice, but ever since Sasuke had been kidnapped she had been different. Even six months later things hadn't changed much.

Mikoto was distant to Itachi, and obsessive about Sasuke. She even moved a futon into Sasuke's room and was sleeping there instead of her bedroom. Meals were silent, except when she spoke to the baby.

Sasuke moved a little in his sleep, no doubt feeling a little uncomfortable laying across his big brothers lap. Itachi was glad the boy was being quiet. He didn't know what Fugaku would do if he suddenly started crying or screeching.

'What if they did get divorced? Would he really keep her from seeing us again? Would he kill her? Would he marry a different woman until Sasuke is six then divorce her too?' Itachi couldn't keep the questions out of his mind. He also couldn't keep one big nagging feeling of guilt from gripping his heart. 'This is all my fault. I'm six now.' His father had treated her like an employee who could be fired, not divorced. He closed his eyes and frowned. Is that all she was? Not a mother, but a clanswoman employed by the clan lord to bear him an heir?

'There is a lot more to this clan that I know. I need to find out what is going on.' Itachi's mind spoke the words, and his heart resolved to start asking his father and elders more about what his own duties as the clan heir were. So far, it didn't sound like anything to brag about. In fact, it sounded awful.

Finally Itachi gave in as his eyelids grew heavy and laid down on the grass, letting sleep overtake him. The last thing he saw was his father looking up at the stars.

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**Well, Fugaku is the same as ever. What will he do now that Kentaro isn't around to "clean up" his messes. And poor Kabuto! I have to admit, Kabuto used to be one of my favorite characters, he was so mysterious. When I found out who his master was before Orochimaru, the first thing I thought was that he must have known Itachi in some way, maybe even worked with him. They are nearly the same age – only a year apart. Well, the chances are slim and Kishi will probably never cover it in the manga, but it creates more drama for the story XD**

**Please review – anonymous accepted**

**Next week – Fugaku and Mikoto's marital problems escalate and Itachi becomes "bait" for a kidnapper…until things go very, very wrong.**


	16. Chapter 16 Home Alone

**In the previous chapter: Itachi is asked to help the police department catch a kidnapper by posing as a helpless, lost child – in other words, bait. We got a hint about what Kabuto is up to, and there is another domestic disturbance at the Uchiha household.**

**Thanks for the reviews! I love reading them **

**Please review. Anonymous reviews are accepted.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 15 – Home Alone**

Mikoto woke up an hour after Fugaku and the boys left the house. She had passed out while her husband had been yelling at her and he had apparently just let her drop to the floor. Sitting up she sent her chakra through the house but felt nothing.

"Where are they?" Her voice was barely audible. She broadcast her chakra once more, but she still couldn't sense them. "He must have taken the boys somewhere." She was starting to feel a little panicked. Fugaku did not know how to care for children. She had to find them. What if he hurt them? Looking around the kitchen she saw the remnants of their late dinner. Fugaku and Itachi had trained early and Itachi was nearly out of chakra when they finally showed up. He wouldn't be able to defend himself or Sasuke if Fugaku did anything.

Mikoto stood up slowly, still feeling a little dizzy. Sending chakra to her hand she examined the back of her head and determined that there was no concussion. Her face, however had several small cuts and bruises and she felt a large bruise on her stomach, right below her ribcage. She was able to lessen the bruise, somewhat, with her chakra. At lease it stopped hurting.

Walking to the bathroom she regretted the fact that the children were present when Fugaku had attacked. She wanted nothing more than to fight back and beat him into the ground. She was a powerful ninja, and had beaten Fugaku many times when sparring, but she refused to fight in front of the children. Perhaps that was the wrong thing to do? Maybe she should have fought back? The problem, though, was that attacking the clan's chief could be taken as an act of treason. Fugaku could do far worse things to her than take her children away if she did fight him. She would die in defense of her children, but not in defense of her own pride. Was that it, then? Was that the reason she refused to fight back?

Reaching the bathroom she got a good look at her face in the mirror and gasped. One eye was swollen shut and dried blood covered the cheek below it. Her other cheek was bruised and swollen. Fighting back the tears born of frustration she carefully washed her face. The cuts weren't deep so she wouldn't need stitches. She used her chakra to minimize the bruises around her eye and cheeks.

Memories of her betrothal to Fugaku sifted through her consciousness as she laid down on the futon in Sasuke's room. The elders had approached her aunt and uncle and told them that the wedding would be in one month. There was no other option. The council had met and decided that the orphan Mikoto, member of the main branch and being raised by her mother's family was the best choice to produce a powerful heir for the clan chief. That was the end of the discussion. Neither she nor her family had a say in the matter. She hadn't seen the point of arguing and was actually quite honored to have been chosen. She knew Fugaku a little bit, having gone on a few missions with him, but despite living in the same village and being nearly the same age (he was five years older) she had never spoken much to him.

The ceremony was elaborate and, no doubt, very expensive. The Hokage and even the Daimyo of Fire country had attended. She had the most beautiful kimono's and five personal attendants to help fit them between the various events. It was like something out of a fairytale. Her eyes shot open as she caught herself drifting off to sleep.

"I understand now." She said out loud to the empty room as her tears started to fall. "I understand why fairytales always end with the wedding instead of the day after. Because there is no happy ending." If anyone had bothered to listen they would have heard the broken hearted sobs of a woman who had turned the page in a book of fairytales to read the epilogue.

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Itachi opened his eyes groggily as he felt someone sit on the side of his bed. Looking up he realized that he was back in his bedroom and Sasuke was lying between him and the wall. The baby was babbling quietly and playing with his brother's long hair. He focused his eyes and noticed that his bedside lamp was on instead of the ceiling light. He was still very sleepy and started to close his eyes again.

"Itachi." His mother's voice woke him up again and he looked at her. She had bruises all over face and there were tears running down her cheeks.

"Don't cry mother." Itachi was so sleepy his voice cracked partially as he spoke. "Father will get mad." He tried to close his eyes again, but opened them again when Mikoto started stroking his hair and his face. She looked at him for two or three minutes before she bent over and hugged him. Kissing his forehead she sat back up.

"I'm sorry Itachi. You are your father's son. There is nothing I can do for you from now on. You must fend for yourself. Please follow your lessons and do everything you can to please him. Sasuke is your replacement if you fail. Please keep that burden from him." Mikoto tried to keep her voice even as she spoke. Itachi was looking at her, finally awake, and a little alarmed.

"There is no choice then? You were here to do a job and that was it?" Surprise filled the young boy's voice.

"There is no choice. You are the heir and will take your father's position as head of the clan. In time the elder's will chose a wife for you. It will not be someone you love, but a genetic match to strengthen the clan. Everyone in the main branch will also have their mates chosen by the elder's. Only the side branch members are free to live as they wish."

"Then I will change it when I am chief." The words were spoken quietly, but with determination. For some reason Mikoto shuddered.

"Sasuke is a member of the side branch, he is free from the problems of the main branch. He can be whatever he wants, he can fall in love, he can…" Mikoto buried her face in her hands as she started to cry again. After a couple minutes she regained her composure.

"Itachi, please promise you will protect him and make sure he can remain free." She reached across and gathered the baby up into her arms and stood up. Sasuke rested his head on her shoulder and grabbed her hair instead. He seemed to be developing a hair fetish.

Itachi looked at his mother as she held Sasuke and wondered if she had ever held him like that. He had no memory of it. He had memories of his mother giving him quick hugs, sometimes a kiss on the forehead, but not of being picked up and hugged. And she wanted him to protect Sasuke? He would have to endure life as the chief of a clan that would bind him to the whim of the elders and laws that would… 'Will my wife cry like mother is now, someday?' He thought to himself bitterly.

"Yes mother, I will protect Sasuke." His words tasted bitter in his mouth and in his heart was the boy's first surge of jealousy. He had a mental image of some unknown woman crying in sorrow, while another woman, the wife of his younger brother Sasuke, laughed in joy. How could the two women be friends? How could Sasuke and he be friends?

Mikoto saw something in her son's eyes. A hardness that she sometimes saw in Fugaku's. "Itachi… I…"

"Please leave mother. I have to attend school in the morning, then train with father. I'm sure we have nothing more to talk about." The boy turned around and faced the wall, making sure he didn't touch the area where Sasuke had been laying only a moment before.

Mikoto ran out of Itachi's room and back into Sasuke's. She had heard Fugaku come back in the house a couple hours earlier. He apparently hadn't wanted to speak with her because he put Sasuke in bed with his older brother. His avoidance felt like a betrayal. She had formulated her plan then. She could get away, go to the capital and live with her aunt. Everything she needed was already in Sasuke's room and once she was sure Fugaku was asleep she had packed. But she had to say goodbye to Itachi without letting him know about her plan. Unfortunately it had backfired and she now felt worse that she did before.

"It would have been better to have said nothing." Placing Sasuke in the baby carrier strapped to her chest she picked up her backpack and two suitcases and walked out of the house without looking back. The sun had not yet risen as she ordered a carriage prepared at the Uchiha stables and rode out of Konoha.

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"Itachi, wake up. You're going to be late for school." Fugaku's words woke Itachi up from a deep sleep. "I forgot to set your alarm clock when we got back last night. Hurry up."

Itachi slowly sat up without opening his eyes. "Why am I so tired?"

"Huh?" Itachi felt his father's hand briefly touch his forehead. "It's just over-use of chakra from your training yesterday. You'll feel better in an hour. As you train more and extend your chakra you actually get used to it and learn to overcome the aftereffects faster."

"Okay. I'll get up and run to school. I'm sure I'll feel better then, father."

Fugaku smiled as Itachi climbed out of bed, then frowned when he noticed one of his sons was missing. "By the way, where is Sasuke?"

"Mother took him and left a few hours ago." Fugaku ran out of the room and threw open Sasuke's door, cursing loudly at the empty room. He walked in and picked up an envelope that had been left in the crib. The letter inside was a plea from Mikoto to let her live in the capital with Sasuke, alone and unhindered. She was giving him Itachi as a "peace offering" so she would be allowed to keep Sasuke.

"Don't go after them father. We are fine by ourselves." The words, spoken calmly and with resolution startled Fugaku. Once again the young boy sounded more like and adult. Yet he couldn't possibly understand, could he?

"You… I… But Mikoto and Sasuke…" Fugaku didn't know what to say. The anger that had been welling up inside of him when he entered the room faded to despair.

"We are fine by ourselves, father. Is there a problem with that?" The six-year-old's voice was way too calm, and Fugaku thought, a little eerie.

"Did Mikoto speak with you before she left?"

"Yes father, Mikoto spoke with me before she left." Fugaku's eyes widened as he heard his son refer to his mother as "Mikoto" instead of "mother".

"Are you mad at her?"

Itachi was silent for several minutes, as if he was thinking. Fugaku was beginning to think the boy wouldn't answer. "No. It is not her I am mad at. I am mad because my life will follow a path chosen by others. I am mad because one day my wife will cry as Mikoto did last night. I am mad because there is nothing I can do about it. I am mad because Sasuke will not have to go through any of this." The young boys face showed no expression, and he held his body very still as he spoke.

"Itachi. You are a very perceptive boy. There are some things about this clan I am keeping secret from you, and will remain a secret for a few more years if I get my wish. However, you must accept that our clan has a very bloody and dishonorable past. The very existence of the Sharingan and Uchiha came from a betrayal so deep that the Hyuuga have bound their own people to prevent it from happening again. Our rules are born of an attempt to prevent certain events from repeating themselves. You must understand that our existence is hurting more than you and me and Mikoto. It hurts the entire Uchiha and Hyuuga clans. If that betrayal had never happened, if our ancestors had remained loyal to the Hyuuga, these laws we have to bind us wouldn't be as strict and perhaps everyone could have… could have a 'happy ending'" Fugaku quoted a phrase from Mikoto's letter.

"If Uchiha never existed…" Itachi spoke the words quietly. "Father? May I have some money for lunch? I do not have time to make something and I don't want to be late for school."

Fugaku pulled out a few bills and handed them over. "I'll bring home some take-out for dinner, then we'll work on the transportation jutsu."

"Good-bye father." Itachi turned around and started walking away.

"Itachi?" Fugaku walked into the hall and caught up with his son in the entryway, putting his sandals on. "Please continue to call Mikoto 'mother'. Despite everything, that is what she is. It would break her heart to hear otherwise."

Itachi finally showed some emotion, as a sad expression crossed his face. He nodded his head once and ran out the door pulling his backpack around his shoulders.

Fugaku walked out of the house and realized that Itachi hadn't had any breakfast. He hoped the boy had enough sense to buy something substantial for lunch instead of candy.

"If the Uchiha had never existed… Itachi if you only knew how many times those words have crossed my mind. We have caused so much pain. And now Mikoto is suffering because of it."

"You too, huh?" Toshiro was standing at the front door.

Fugaku returned his gaze. "Is Kisa…" He didn't know what to ask.

"Kisa said she saw Mikoto and Sasuke leave in a carriage early this morning. She wants to know where she went."

"She… she left me and Itachi. She left us and moved to the capital to be with her aunt. I…" Fugaku sat down on the step that lead from the entryway into the hall.

Toshiro sighed and sat down next to him. "You beat her up again, didn't you?" Fugaku looked at his cousin in shock. "Kisa saw the bruises on her face."

"I… have no excuse. I shouldn't have done it. Why do I do it?" Fugaku put his head in his hands.

Toshiro looked at the younger man. He thought he knew the answer, but since there was no solution the answer was pointless. "Fugaku, perhaps you two just need some time apart for a while. Like a vacation. Then maybe after a couple weeks you can get together and talk things out. I'll see if Kisa wants to go stay with Mikoto and her aunt, perhaps it would do her some good as well."

"Things are getting that bad for you, too?" Fugaku raised his head and looked at Toshiro.

"Yeah. She is getting between me and Shisui. She is afraid he will be injured or killed and I want him to be a strong ninja, which means he will be injured and, someday, possibly killed. Our agenda's are crossing. Shisui has been gone for two weeks now and won't return until next week and she has been crying everyday." He saw Fugaku's expression go from despair to understanding. "I take it you and Mikoto fought over us using Itachi as bait."

"Yeah." Fugaku sighed. "You are right. I'll back off for a while, and you send Kisa to the capital, and maybe in two or three weeks we can all sort things out. In the meantime, I guess I better head over to the police station."

"Okay, I'll be by in a couple hours after I get Kisa off. Since Mikoto took a carriage it's possible that she could still catch up with her if she uses her chakra and runs." Toshiro stood up and gave his cousin what he hoped was a reassuring smile and walked home.

Fugaku felt a little better, but he knew it was going to be hard to be alone without Mikoto. Unfortunately he wouldn't have time to think about. He had a kidnapper to catch and lord only knows what else to deal with today. Konoha was a small town, but the amount of crime that the police dealt with was much higher than in a regular, non-ninja town. Locking the front door he walked to work.

One question wandered through his thoughts as he walked past the academy. 'I wonder if Itachi has a house key?'

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Four days later Itachi was walking through a neighborhood in the northeast part of the village. The area was still torn up from the Kyuubi attack six months earlier, but there was also a lot of new construction as crumbled buildings were torn down and replaced. He was wearing a pair of long jeans that reached the ground and a t-shirt with a picture of some cartoon he had never heard of. His long hair was tied back sloppily and a hat with the team symbol of a popular soccer team was placed on his head. He wore flip-flops instead of his usual ninja sandals. He looked like a regular civilian five year old boy.

Three policemen trailed him at different locations, making sure to stay out of sight. They had been at this for three days and Itachi was getting anxious. He wanted something to happen. He wanted to prove to his father that he could be a great ninja and that he could be trusted. He also wanted everything to be over before Shisui came back in a few days so he would have some great story to tell his cousin. Of course, he also wanted it to be over soon so that he would have time to listen to Shisui tell him all about his three week mission. Right now he went from school, to playing "bait" to dinner and then training, homework, and bed. He had no time to himself.

Itachi realized he wasn't paying attention to where he was going and stopped walking. He had never been in this part of town before, and while the village wasn't big, population-wise, it was huge in terms of area with most of the buildings located near the front gate. That meant that the northeast corner where he currently was had one section with buildings, but the rest was residential single family homes with big yards and small areas of forest. He had wandered into a forested area.

"Keep walking. Maybe wandering in the woods for a little bit will work." The voice in the radio receiver attached discreetly behind Itachi's ear spoke quietly. Itachi nodded once to indicate he understood, then scratched his forehead to hide the nod. The forest was actually quite nice. It was sunny out again and there were a lot of birds. He stopped to watch as two birds fought over how to build a nest. One bird would put a twig in the pile and the other one would pull it out and then put the twig in a different spot. Itachi sighed and continued walking.

'Even the birds fight with each other.' Itachi sighed again and started picking up rocks and throwing them at the bottom of the trees as he walked by them. The birds ignored him and kept fighting over their nest.

"I think he's getting tired. How long has it been?" The policeman had heard Itachi sigh and mistook it for exhaustion instead of frustration.

"Two and a half hours. We were only supposed to be here for two hours. Call him in." A second voice answered.

"Itachi, return home. Mission called off. Again. Sorry kid."

Itachi nodded and scratched his forehead again. Then scratched it again. Rubbing his skin he realized he had a mosquito bite.

"I hate mosquitoes." He spoke out loud.

A shadow peaked out from behind a tree and watched intently as the young boy turned around and walked away.

Returning home he went to his room and laid down on his bed. His father would be home soon with dinner. Neither of them had cooked anything in the kitchen since Mikoto left. Itachi would usually grab a roll from the Uchiha bakery in the mornings, but today they had prepared a box lunch so he didn't have to run to a take-out place for lunch and run back to school. They were only given thirty minutes to eat so it was very inconvenient. He had given the lady at the bakery such a big smile that she laughed and said he would get one every day as long as he kept giving her such wonderful thank-yous.

"Itachi! You hungry?"

"Ah!" Itachi sat up quickly with a cry of surprise. He stared at his father, who was smirking at him. "I don't remember falling asleep."

"Stakeouts can do that to you. Even if you have had the best sleep ever, the boredom of having to wait for something to happen can make you very sleepy. However, choosing when to sleep and then taking advantage of that opportunity is important."

"So you take soldier pills to stay awake when you get sleepy?" Itachi sat down in the kitchen and opened a Styrofoam container of something with meat and rice in it.

"Yeah. There are also a few mental exercises you can do to keep yourself alert. Though, I must say, throwing the rocks at the trees was an interesting twist. What made you do that?"

Itachi looked up at his father, wondering if he should tell him. "Two birds were building a nest and they were fighting over how it should be done. It reminded me of…" He sighed again as Fugaku looked down at the table. "Nevermind." Itachi resumed eating.

"It's okay, kid." Fugaku had to smile. The thought of a couple birds having the same problems as him and his wife seemed almost preposterous, yet Itachi had seen something out there. Too bad it wasn't the kidnapper.

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The room was silent and dark. The curtains over the closed window were open allowing the moonlight to spill onto Itachi's bed. A man slowly rose up from the floor using an earth style transportation jutsu. He masked his chakra and slowly walked over to the sleeping boy. He had waited outside for several hours and finally, a few minutes ago, the man who also lived in the house had left. The boy was alone now.

Leaning over the bed the stranger made a few hand signs then placed his right hand over the boy's face. Immediately the child was rendered unconscious. Picking him up, he disappeared into the earth again.

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Fugaku knew something was wrong the moment he stepped back into the house. He had gone to speak to a couple of the elders and ended up staying for a couple hours. As soon as he entered the house he reached out with his chakra to sense for other chakra sources nearby. And felt none. He tried again. Nothing. He looked down at the floor of the entryway, but Itachi's shoes were still there. The boy never left the house without his shoes on. Not since he had cut his foot open at the lake when he was three.

Entering his eldest son's room he switched on the light. The bed covers had been thrown back all the way to the end of the bed. Another bad sign. Itachi always pulled the covers back to the top of the bed when he got up. Even if he was just going to the bathroom for five minutes. He looked under the pillow and no pajamas. Again, the boy always put his pajamas in one spot so he had not changed his clothes.

There was only one conclusion. Fugaku sat down on Itachi's bed and put his head in his hands. The kidnapper had entered the house and taken the boy. He had entered the house of the head of the Uchiha clan – the most powerful clan in Konoha – and kidnapped the heir.

"And I wasn't here to protect him. I said he was mine to train and raise Mikoto, I told you to back off. And now…" Fugaku lifted his head and looked around the room with his Sharingan activated. He could see no traces of chakra. Obviously he had been kidnapped shortly after Fugaku left the house. He considered using the ninja cats to track the boy, but they were on another mission and wouldn't be back in time to be of any use.

Fugaku walked back out into the hallway and pulled a wireless transmitter from his pocket. Turning it on he contacted the police station and put them on alert. It was nearly midnight and despite the bad news the man at the other end of the radio sounded glad to have some action. Fugaku quickly collected Toshiro and tasked another clansman he found walking down the street to wake the other policemen and send them to the station.

Gathering at the station a short while later Fugaku laid out the facts of the kidnapping. Chief among them was an undisturbed house, a sleeping six-year-old, and no evidence left behind. The conclusion? Only one made sense. The kidnapper had to be a ninja. Possibly jounin class or higher. Also, given the homicidal tendencies of the criminal he was probably a missing-nin.

ANBU joined the investigation about 1:30am with about ten Bingo books from different shinobi nations – both the big five and several smaller ones that were causing problems. They poured through them looking for a profile that could match the kidnapper and perhaps tell them something about why he was doing this. A man who had previously killed or injured children, or a kidnapper. One problem was that none of the previous kidnappings had indicated the man was a ninja. Why did he choose to reveal such an important fact in order to kidnap Itachi? Was there something about the boy that sparked his interest?

After they had narrowed down their search to several possible suspects they started pouring over the list of victims. Fugaku asked them to look for small boys similar in appearance to Itachi. Unfortunately, Itachi was a small boy, olive toned skin, black long hair, black eyes, and rather thin. A description that matched about half the boys on the continent.

When the sun rose they had no suspects. Fugaku still believed the man was a missing nin, but had remained under the radar enough to never make the Bingo books. That could mean he was leading a double life. He could be a farmer or merchant who, for some reason, would suddenly feel the desire to kidnap and kill small children. Then after he satiated his desire would go back to pulling weeds or selling rice. That would make him much more unstable than a "regular" kidnapper, so to speak. Itachi could already be dead. Fugaku swallowed hard as his stomach flip-flopped.

The office door opened and Fugaku looked up from his desk. The Third Hokage was standing there with a concerned looked on his face. "ANBU filled me in on what is going on. It seems we have a high level ninja to deal with here instead of a civilian." He saw the look of frustration on the police chiefs face. "Don't worry, ANBU missed the profile too. The man is worthy of the ninja title, but he unworthy of a village membership. This man must be found and killed. Do not bring him back alive, Fugaku." He gave a bitter laugh. "Like I need to tell you that. I'm sure you have his death planned out already."

"Yes. We will find him. Do I have use of any ANBU?" Fugaku's voice was full of frustration and deadly intent.

"I, unfortunately, cannot lend you any ANBU. I received word a few hours ago that Stone had attacked a village on our border by Rain country. Most of the ninjas are fighting the village hidden in the Clouds right now so in order to have enough troops I am having to send out ANBU and use the instructors at the Academy. I am also going to have to ask for one quarter of your staff to join the battle as well."

Fugaku looked at the Hokage in shock, but quickly recovered. "You may have the Third division. About 20 percent of them are Uchiha with Sharingan. I will get by with what I have and protect the village."

"Fugaku. I understand how you feel about your son. I know the situation is different, but I have been through two divorces, and my son Asuma left the village to be a guard for the Daimyo of Fire country. I still have my other son, but he is fighting the Cloud ninja right now. Both my ex-wives died years ago in service to the village. It is not easy to live this life we have chosen and it is times like this that we realize it and question our resolve. Our personal lives suffer the most. For what it is worth, I hope you find your son alive. He is a genius and I look forward to having him serve under me one day soon." The Hokage gave a week smile and left the office.

Sighing lightly Fugaku rose from his desk and walked down the hall to the conference room. After telling the officer on duty to mobilize the Third division for the Hokage he put the First division (which was composed only of Uchiha's) on duty to find the kidnapper and the Second division to protect the village. The Fourth division was sent home to sleep – they would take the night shift later.

"I still have Sasuke." Fugaku tried to reassure himself with thoughts of his youngest son, but he didn't want the boy to take Itachi's place. He wanted his youngest to be free of the limitations of being the clan heir. To be free to be and do what he wanted instead of training endlessly to be the strongest and taking the reigns and shackles of leadership. Besides, he wanted Mikoto to have a son beside her, and he knew Itachi could never fill that role.

Gathering up the First division he dispersed them into the woods surrounding the village to search for clues.

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Many miles away Mikoto was awakened shortly after midnight when the water class on her nightstand fell to the floor and broke. Sitting up she turned on the lamp and gasped as she looked at the broken glass. Kisa, who was in the other bed sat up quickly and asked her what was wrong.

"Itachi! Something has happened to Itachi!" Mikoto wrung her hands as Kisa looked at her helplessly. She remembered putting the glass of water on the table for Mikoto earlier, about a foot from the edge. How had it worked itself close enough to the edge to fall off? It had to be a bad omen.

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**Poor Itachi – kidnapped in the middle of the night by a stranger. He must be so scared. Yeah, right. Probably plotting the man's demise more likely. But we'll find out for sure next week when we tune in for the next exciting episode of "Itachi: The Early Years".**

**Don't forget to review, and if you add this story to your "Alerts" you'll get an e-mail whenever I update. It's kind of fun to come home after a hard day and find stories in your e-mail. **

**I update on Fridays. I have to. I'm the kind of person who, if I don't have a deadline, won't do anything. To me, the phrase "do it when you get around to it" means "it doesn't have to be done". XD**


	17. Chapter 17 Where Am I

**In the previous chapter: Itachi is kidnapped from his bedroom and the police are left with no clues. **

**Thanks for the reviews! I love reading them **

**Well, questions are coming up about Madara and Obito, so here is a "semi" answer (I don't want to blow the plot xD -- sorry if this is a little long XD):**

**About Madara – Yeah he has problems xD. Number one amongst them is his inability to keep control over himself, the question is: why? Alternate personality, guilt complex, other mental illness? The answer will have to wait… And Obito? His body is missing, but is that important? What may be more important is the influence Obito had and still has over Itachi and Shisui. He was a good friend and the three of them had a very special relationship. But… how clearly do you remember the friends you had when you were four? Why does Itachi still hold such fond memories of someone he knew when he was four years old? Will they still be there as more years pass?**

**Concerning the theories about Madara inhabiting Obito's body – I have to admit that I am keeping "options" open for further revelations in the manga right now. I mean, why is Kishi keeping that mask on Madara/Tobi? Now that we know Tobi is Madara I expect the mask to come off soon, and I hope it's a Madara who used the eternal Mangekyo Sharingan to live a long time instead of a body stealer like Orochimaru. Hopefully in the manga, when Itachi finishes beating the crap out of Sasuke (o.O) the focus will return to the Konoha and Tobi stand-off and we can get this answered xD **

**Please review. Anonymous reviews are accepted. And if you have more questions, ask away! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, he is owned by Masashi Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 16 – Where am I?**

The sun was shining on his face. He could see red through his closed eyelids and concentrated on the color as he slowly woke up. Attempting to move his arms he quickly discovered he was being restrained.

"Ah! My little boy is finally awake. Are you warm enough Okita? You are so small and skinny. You are probably very cold." Itachi's eyes shot open and he stared at the man whose face was only inches from his own.

"Who are you! How did I get here!" He struggled but the man had him wrapped in a blanket and was holding him tightly in his arms. The last thing he remembered was going to bed the previous night.

"Oh no! You do not even remember your own father?" The man was sorrowful and a tear dripped out of one of his blue eyes.

"You aren't my father! Let me go!" Itachi struggled but the blanket was wrapped too tightly. He couldn't move his arms or his legs.

"That evil Uchiha policeman kidnapped you and was brain washing you into thinking you were his son." The man wiped his nose on the back of his dirty sleeve. "But you aren't! And I won't let him have you!" He yelled and dropped the boy to the ground as he stood up.

Itachi lay still as he watched the man stand up. Gasping, he stared up in shock. The man was nearly seven feet tall and easily weighed four hundred pounds. He was huge. Shoulder length light blond hair contrasted with the man's dark skin. Looking closer Itachi could see the man had dark colored roots about two or three inches long. Week old stubble covered his jaw line and a large scar could be seen across his neck – as if he had survived a near decapitation. His clothes were filthy and he smelled awful, but the blanket Itachi was wrapped in was freshly laundered and smelled like it had been hanging on a clothesline.

The giant was not wearing a forehead protector, but he had to have been a ninja at one time. The boy was sure of it. But now, he did not seem to be in very good shape. He had a belly bulge and his round face looked like it should have been long and thin.

Rolling around on the ground Itachi freed himself from the blanket but quickly discovered that his ankle was tied to a stake. He grabbed at the rope to try to free himself.

"Now, now, young Okita, that won't work. The rope is chakra enhanced and cannot be broken. But don't worry, I won't hurt you. Not like that evil policeman who kidnapped you. No. You are my son and I love you. I would never hurt you." The man kneeled down and stroked the boy's dark hair, trying to sooth him. Itachi jerked back out of his reach and the man sighed and stood back up, turning his back to the boy.

They were in the woods, but Itachi could see a field through the trees about a hundred feet away. He could also hear a stream nearby.

"I'm going to go look for your mother. Sugaku said she was going into town to get some food. She should have been back by now. You stay here and be a good boy, or I'll have to punish you." The large man disappeared into the ground, causing Itachi to blink once in surprise. That was one cool jutsu.

Now that he was alone Itachi went back to the rope. He tried to slip it off his foot, untie it, pick at the individual strands, pull up the stake, and about a dozen other things, but he could not free himself. He even tried a transportation jutsu but the rope prevented the jutsu from moving further than its length. Finally, after and hour of heavy thinking he sat back down.

Looking down at his leg he realized he was still in his pajamas and had no shoes. His pajamas had a soccer ball pattern on the pants and the symbol of a popular team on the shirt. He didn't really play soccer anymore, but he was drawn to the game. Thinking about soccer tended to relax him. And that was what he needed to do right now. Relax and think of a way out of this.

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While Itachi was trying to free himself, the police force was stuck in Konoha with its own problems. Fugaku had to deploy several policemen to the ninja prison to dispel a riot that had started during a food fight at breakfast. This resulted in three injured policemen and about twenty-seven injured prisoners, as well as several hours of fighting, paperwork, and meetings with the Hokage, doctors, and relatives of the policemen and prisoners.

The day wore on to evening before Fugaku could go back to searching for his son. He had three other policemen searching but it wasn't looking good. The kidnapper was, evidently, a highly skilled ninja.

Late that night Fugaku sat in his empty house. In the semi-darkness of his living room, shadows moved in and out of the darkness. He hadn't sat in the room like this since before he was married. He remembered the years he had spent living in the house alone. It was always dark, even when all the lights were on. It was always silent, even when the TV was on.

Staring at the wall the across from the couch he looked at the photographs Mikoto had plastered on the wall. They were cast in shadows, giving them an almost ghostly appearance. He thought about Mikoto's family. Her parents had been killed on missions and she was raised by her aunt and uncle. But he was left to live alone since he was five.

"_Why can't I keep living with you, Kentaro?" The young Fugaku had asked his guardian. It was his first night back in the house since his parents had died and he was fighting back his tears._

"_You are the clan chief. You must show your rsolve and independence. You cannot depend on others, as you exist for others to depend on you. If you show weakness, they will not feel they can depend on you. You must take care of yourself." Kentaro was kneeling in front of the young boy, looking him in the eye. His voice was stern._

"_It's…kind of scary here." Fugaku's voice was quiet._

"_Get over it. The clan has no use for weak minded leaders, and frankly, it's disgusting to hear you say such things. Now grow up. You are the leader of the Uchiha. That means you cannot be acting like a little kid. You must act like a man." Kentaro had stood up and left the house then, slamming the door on his way out. Fugaku had broken down and cried. More out of frustration than fear of the dark. He had wanted something, but he didn't know what._

"It was all mind games with you, wasn't it Kentaro? But you were right. I did need to take care of myself. They do depend on me. The entire clan." His gaze moved to the latest picture of Itachi. He was looking at the camera but his eyes were unfocused and he had a sad look on his face. Like he was deep in thought and the camera didn't exist. He wondered what he was thinking. Or if he even thought at all.

Sometimes it looked like the boy was acting on some primal level, instinct or something slightly higher than instinct yet not quite conscious thought. He thought back to when he had to stop the boy from killing Yota. It was an event he couldn't get out of his mind. What was really disturbing though was that Yota was now hanging out with Itachi. They weren't friends, though. He said he wanted to become powerful enough to beat him in a fight. Fugaku took that to mean that the two boys were the same and wondered if that fight, if it happened, would result in one of them dying. He was pretty sure it would.

Fugaku leaned forward and put his head in his hands. His mind was rambling over subjects that had nothing to do with finding his son. The random thoughts continued to swirl around in his mind.

It had been determined that the kidnapper had used an earth jutsu to nab the boy. Unfortunately that meant that there would be no trail to follow within the village. He wanted to use some ninja dogs or cats, but all the animals were currently out on missions. The three Uchiha policemen he had on the case were currently combing the woods outside the village walls for a trail. The area was huge, though, and the kidnapper had left several false trails. At last count they had found 120 false trails. Fugaku had never seen anyone that determined before. However, it did show one very obvious clue. The kidnapper knew the woods around the village very well. That meant the man was probably living nearby.

Standing up, Fugaku walked into Itachi's bedroom. He had cleaned the room and made the bed after the forensics team had gone over the room. It gave him something to do for an hour. He had a lot of nervous energy and for some reason cleaning the room had helped calm him down.

Truth be told, he missed Itachi. He had come to look forward to their nightly training exercises and he was eager to see what his young prodigy would accomplish next. He foresaw a grand future for his son. One that would bring honor to the clan and cement their relationship with the village and the Hokage. He would restore the village's faith in the clan that birthed evils such as Madara and the Kyuubi. Fugaku did indeed have grand thoughts of his eldest son and heir. The young genius was a key, and a key was nothing more than a tool. Fugaku was determined to make sure he was the man in control of that key, and the doors it would be used to open.

But first he had to find the missing boy. If he died now then all his plans would collapse. He loved his youngest son, but truthfully, he doubted the boy would be as great as Itachi. Even considering who the boy's "real" father was, there seemed to be some huge differences between the two already. For example, Sasuke was nearly ten months old, yet he hadn't started to talk yet. Itachi was already saying simple words at that age. Itachi could also pull himself up on the side of his crib and would stand like that watching his mother. Sasuke was still crawling. Itachi was a quiet baby who rarely needed to be picked up, Sasuke screamed and cried a lot and Mikoto had to carry him around with her everywhere. In fact, Itachi could be left alone in his crib all day without making any fuss.

Fugaku remembered Kagura making a fuss over Itachi when he was a baby. She insisted that leaving him alone for such long periods was going to cause him to become isolated and he would have trouble forming relationships later in life. She said that Mikoto needed to carry him around more. But Mikoto insisted that Itachi wasn't that kind of child. He didn't seem to want to be picked up, although he never objected, he would just ignore his mother unless she spoke to him, then he would watch her and try to imitate the words.

The day Itachi turned four years old was the first time Fugaku had gotten involved in his life. Before that he had tried to pretend the boy didn't exist. He didn't want children and ignoring the boy was the easiest way to deal with it. Itachi formed a bond with his two young cousins, Obito and Shisui, and his mother, as well as Kisa and Kagura. But sometimes he would see the boy standing aside, watching the others as if he didn't know what to do. As if he could only react to something if he saw someone else react first so he could copy them.

Fugaku felt a shiver run down his spine as he recognized some of the outward signs of a sociopath. But those were also traits that made a good ninja. As a policeman he ran into many ninja who were only "legal" because they were useful for missions. He also arrested many ninja who became "illegal" because there were no longer any missions that matched their expertise and they insisted on "training" with live subjects. It was a narrow line that moved constantly. Some of these people could no longer see the line and depended on others to tell them where it was. For the millionth time he wondered where Itachi would fit in to all of that chaos.

Turning off the remaining lights, Fugaku left his house and returned to the police station. He had no intention of sleeping until he located his son.

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The next day a hawk delivered a letter to the Uchiha stables, which also housed an aviary for messenger birds. Addressed to Fugaku, it was delivered to him at the police station within a few minutes of arriving.

Fugaku opened the letter and frowned when he realized it was from Mikoto. It was short and to the point. _"What has happened to Itachi?"_

How could she know something happened? He had heard old wives tales about a mother's link to her child, but this was… amazing? Ridiculous?

What was he going to answer? "None of your business" was the first thing to come to mind. That would not go down to good if he was going to reconcile with her. Pulling out a piece of paper he started to write.

"I am sorry, Mikoto, but Itachi has been kidnapped. We have no leads. Do not leave the capital, the war is nearby and you and Sasuke would be in danger." He looked over the letter, then rewrote it without the "sorry" bit. He would not compromise on the way he was raising his heir and Mikoto would have to accept that sooner rather than later. Sealing the letter he called the stable keeper in from the waiting room and asked him to send it out right away.

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Itachi was still alone. The kidnapper had not returned since he had left the previous morning. He was glad he had the blanket, his pajamas were not the best thing to wear outside at night. However, his stomach had been growling and was starting to make him feel sick. He needed something to eat. He was also very thirsty and had resorted to licking the dew off of the grass and plants. He hoped they weren't poisonous and made a mental note to study plants when he got home.

He returned his attention to the rope. It was chakra enhanced. It had occurred to him that if there was a way to remove the chakra from the rope then perhaps he could free himself. But how was he going to do that?

Itachi had also wondered how long it would take his father to come and get him. He figured the police would have been here by now, but for some reason they weren't. Perhaps they weren't coming? Perhaps his father was embarrassed because he had been weak enough to get captured? The boy sighed. That was probably it. He was embarrassed. "I'll have to do this by myself then."

"How do I drain the chakra from the rope?" He started talking to himself. "Maybe if I pull on it for a long time the chakra will drain?" He tried that, but the longer he pulled on it the more tired he became until he finally fell asleep.

"_Itachi?"_ The voice was loud and the boy woke up with a sudden jerk, expecting to see someone leaning over him and yelling in his ear. However, he looked around and saw no one. Then the voice spoke again. _"Itachi? Are you awake, kid?"_ It was Madara's voice!

"Yes! I'm here!" Itachi spoke out loud. Madara was projecting his voice through the bracelet. It was the first time he had contacted him since they had practiced with them a few weeks ago.

"_Itachi, you sound a little panicked. What's wrong?"_ Madara was several miles away in another country and had decided to check on the boy after hearing some disturbing rumors.

"I…uh…sort of…" Itachi was suddenly embarrassed. How could he tell his mentor that he had been kidnapped and couldn't figure out how to escape?

"_Itachi?"_

"Igotkidnappedandthere'sachakraropearoundmyfootandIcan'tgetitoff" Itachi said the words very fast then cringed as he imagined Madara laughing at him.

Madara was silent for a couple minutes as he translated his young student's gibberish. He smiled, resisting the urge to laugh. The boy definitely had his moments. He finally spoke _"You aren't going to be able to get it off without a special type of kunai. What kinds of weapons do you have with you?"_

"None. He caught me in my bedroom. I don't even have my shoes." Itachi was feeling a little down. Maybe he should start sleeping with his weapons belt on? Yeah, he would do that.

"_Your bedroom?"_ Madara's voice suddenly turned angry and Itachi cringed again. _"Where the hell were your parents?"_ Oh yeah, he was mad alright.

"Um… Mother took Sasuke and left us. She's living in the capital now. Father…I don't know where he was. I was asleep."

Miles away, Madara clenched his gloved hand into a fist then walked over to a wall and punched it. Hard. It cracked and chunks of concrete fell out of it.

"What was that for?" A man with orangeish-red hair walked into the room and watched as clumps of concrete fell to the floor.

"Contact Sasori and tell him to get in touch with his subordinate in Konoha. Itachi's incompetent father… Damn him. I definitely look forward to killing him someday." He paused and brought his emotions back under control. "Have Sasori's subordinate contact Itachi. He needs a kunai with a chakra depletion spell tag attached to it."

"Of course. Right away. Anything else?" The man's voice was calm, almost kind.

Madara frowned at him from behind his mask. "Go ahead and let Kabuto speak with Itachi using the bracelets. Tell him to follow Itachi's orders. That should be enough."

"And where should I send the bill for the wall repair?"

"Huh?" Madara was confused.

"Should I tell Kakuzu or do you want to?"

"Just send the god damned message!" Madara yelled as the redhead exited the room, snickering. "I don't give a damn what that skinflint thinks. Like the wall would get repaired anyway."

Madara called Itachi again using the bracelet _"Itachi!"_

Itachi jumped at the angry sound of the man's voice. _"The Leader is contacting one of my subordinates right now. He has a spy in Konoha who will be coming to help you."_

"Is it Kabuto Yakushi?" Itachi interrupted.

Madara was dumbstruck, and had to pause to reconstruct his thoughts. The two boys did attend the same school…

Itachi was a little alarmed at the silence and felt he needed to explain "He sits next to me in school and has the same kind of bracelet as me. We… we sometimes train together."

Madara thought about that bit of information for another minute. Itachi was a very clever boy. This could be something to watch out for. He had spotted a spy that easily, and Madara knew for a fact that Kabuto was not a pushover. Sasori spoke very highly of him. He wanted to train the young Uchiha, he had a use for him eventually, but he decided he would also have to watch his back.

"_Yes it is Kabuto. He will contact you using the bracelets. He is being told to follow your orders."_ Madara moderated his voice so that it showed no emotion.

"_Itachi?"_

"Yes?"

"_Kabuto is to follow _your_ orders. Do not take orders from him. You are an Uchiha. You are better than he is. He may make suggestions, but do not allow him to go any further than that. Correct him if you need to. That boy is manipulative and never direct."_

"Thank-you. I'll wait for Kabuto to contact me." Itachi sighed. He felt better about someone his own age helping him than an adult.

"_Just cleaning up your father's messes. I'll contact you again in a few days_." Madara ended the communication. He heard someone else enter the room and turned around.

"You never change, do you?" A tall man with an angry voice was looking at the damaged wall. He had his face wrapped in a way that revealed only his eyes and his body was also covered completely in long pants, long sleeve shirt and he had a light colored, floor length cloak wrapped around his body. "I distinctly remember getting after you when you were a boy for destroying property."

"Ah! Kakuzu… I heard you were hanging around…And for the record I was in my twenties when that happened." Madara used a transportation jutsu to disappear. Kakuzu made a rude gesture into the empty room and walked away in a bad mood.

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Kabuto was sitting on his bed reading a book on medical ninjutsu his father had assigned to him the night before. It was one of the only things that gave the boy pleasure. He wanted to be a medic when he became a ninja and followed his father's lessons closely. He was happy that the Academy had been closed so the teachers could be re-activated and sent to fight the stone ninja. It gave him more time to study. In fact, he was so engrossed in his book that he didn't notice his master calling him for a good two minutes.

"Master! I'm here!" Kabuto straightened up then decided to stand up, but fell off the bed because he had unknowingly twisted his foot in the bedspread.

"_What are you doing?"_ Sasori's gritty voice was full of anger at having been made to wait for his subordinate's attention.

"I…uh…fell off the bed." Kabuto grinned and scratched the back of his neck.

Sasori uttered a small growl of frustration. _"Why are you sleeping in the middle of the day?"_

"I was studying medical ninjutsu." Kabuto smile turned into a frown.

"_Hmm. Good choice, considering your Kekkei Genkai_." Kabuto shook his head a couple time times to clear it. Did his master just compliment him?

"_Kabuto! I need to you to go get your little friend and go help Itachi. You may contact the boy using the bracelet. He will fill you in on the details." _

"So, we are recruiting Yota, then?" Kabuto spoke hesitantly. He did not want to do that.

"_Yes."_

"He is a Hyuuga. There could be problems."

"_A Hyuuga, huh."_ Sasori laughed menacingly. _"All the better."_

"Yes master. I will do as you say." Kabuto felt Sasori cut off the communication contact. Sighing deeply he sat back down on the bed, this time keeping his legs hanging over the edge.

Concentrating, Kabuto sent his chakra into the bracelet and called out to Itachi.

"Itachi. Please answer. If you cannot speak right now, say 'no'."

Itachi was a little surprised to hear Kabuto's voice in his mind, even though he had been told to expect contact. _"I am here, Kabuto."_

"Tell me the situation. I will collect Yota and come to help."

"_I was helping my father catch the kidnapper by acting as bait, and he took me from my bedroom in the middle of the night instead. I'm being held by a chakra rope and I guess I need a kunai with a chakra depletion tag attached to it to cut it."_ Itachi kept his voice even and steady, hiding the relief he felt about being rescued.

"Do you know where you are?" Kabuto stood up and pulled a map out of his desk.

"_There is a field nearby, along with a small stream. I haven't heard anything to indicate a road is nearby, nor have I heard any people."_ Itachi thought about any other clues that may pinpoint his position.

"What about animals?"

"_None. Except for birds. Not even squirrels."_

"That leaves out the area near the gate. And this area here is notorious for rabbits so you aren't there." Kabuto was looking at the map and talking out loud. "There is a river here, which would be louder than a stream so you aren't there either. Hmm. What kinds of trees are nearby? Can you see the rock cliff the Hokage are carved on? Any unusual smells?"

Itachi stood up and looked around_. "Yeah, I can see a bit of a cliff to the south. The trees are all pines. No deciduous at all. I smell pine trees, it's very strong."_

"Ah! You are to the north in the pine forest here." Kabuto put his finger on the map. "The woodsmen chop trees down for firewood for the village in that area, so that is probably why the scent is so strong. Can you see any stumps?"

Itachi paused for a moment. Kabuto was really smart. Much smarter than he was in class. He hadn't even thought of any of the things the white haired boy was coming up with. _"There are a few stumps."_

"Can you see what color they are? Fresh and nearly white, or old and gray?"

"_Almost white." _

"I'll ask the woodsman where he was cutting last. I bet that is where you are…" Kabuto trailed off and his eyes opened wide.

"_Kabuto! Do you know the woodsman?"_ Itachi's eyes also went wide.

"Yes! I wonder… he is the only one who goes up there, Itachi. He is very tall and a little fat. My father has been treating him for a mental condition but I don't know any more than that."

Itachi's heart fell. That was the man, alright. He sat back down on the ground. _"You'll have to come up here without talking to him. I haven't seen him since yesterday morning."_

"Ok. I have a good idea where you are, Yota and I should be able to find you by nightfall. Hopefully sooner. And I'll bring the kunai and tag." Kabuto could hear the disappointment in the younger boy's voice and suddenly felt sorry for him. He knew Itachi would wring his neck for thinking that, but he couldn't help it.

"_Also, some food and water? There's nothing to eat here because he hasn't come back."_

"Who are you talking to boy!" The loud voice seemed to rip through woods as the large man suddenly re-appeared from the ground, causing both boys to cringe.

Kabuto came to his senses first, "Imaginary friend."

"My…my imaginary friend. He…he likes to play with me and we talk all the time." Itachi stuttered the words out, but it was more from the shock of anyone having something as silly as an imaginary friend than it was from fear of the giant standing in front of him.

"Itachi, I'm on my way." Kabuto cut off the contact.

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In the capital Mikoto opened the message sent by her husband. As she stared at it she could see the unwritten message: "hands off". Of course he couldn't say much in case the messenger Hawk had been intercepted, but she still understood. Itachi was now his to raise. Even if she went back … Even if she lived in the same house with him again, he wouldn't be her son. Not the way he used to be.

Sasuke started crying again and Mikoto walked down the hall to the room she was sharing with Kisa. Two twin beds were arranged perpendicular to each other, with the crib placed on the opposite wall. The boy was on his hands and knees with his head resting on the wooden bars. Eyes squeezed shut his face was red and covered with tears. He had been crying more often since they had come to the capital. All Mikoto could figure was that the baby missed his big brother. She picked him up, but he didn't stop crying. An hour later, the infant was still sobbing, but he was also starting to suck his thumb. A few minutes later he was asleep.

Mikoto laid the baby back in the crib and covered him lightly with a blanket. Her aunt had been thrilled to see her and the baby. She was a widow now and ran the shipping business that her late husband had left behind. Of course, that meant she had been much too busy to visit Konoha. In fact, she was so thrilled at seeing Sasuke that she was now talking about retiring and moving back to Konoha. Mikoto sensed there was something else in that train of thought, and hoped that she was right. She would like nothing more than to have her aunt, who had raised her like a daughter, to live nearby.

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**Please review! **

**Next week Itachi and his merry band of henchmen go up against a seven foot madman.**


	18. Chapter 18 The Giant and the Little Boy

**This weeks question was about "filler". Unfortunately, since we know few details about Itachi's childhood, almost the entire story could be "filler". I'm trying to use the "filler" concept to get across several concepts that could explain how Itachi eventually ended up as a clan killer. The hardest, I think, is to show Itachi's childhood as harsh and filled with uncertainty, and show Sasuke's childhood and happy and loving. I don't plan on using "filler" to create meaningless events, but I'm not an experienced writer, so if I'm not getting the point across, tell me. Each "storyline" has a purpose. The "Kidnapper" storyline is to show Itachi some of his shortcomings. He will come out of this with more ideas about how to make himself stronger.**

**Thanks for all the reviews!**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto. **

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**Chapter 18 – The Giant and the Little Boy**

Kabuto strapped on his weapons belt and filled it with several kunai. He grabbed his full-size kunai instead of using the "child size" he usually practiced with. Digging through his father's desk he found a secret panel and opened it. Inside, among other things, was a stack of chakra encoded tags. Finding the specific ones he was looking for he took three, vowing to return the unused ones later.

Kabuto's chest tightened as he thought about his life with Sasori. It was not a happy life. He was constantly fearful of what the man would make him do and was half convinced that eventually, he would die by his master's hands. Sasori kept alluding to an event he claimed proved Kabuto's evil nature. Yet Kabuto had no memories to prove the claim. Not even any nightmares. He tried pressing his master for details once, but Sasori had been cruel and the boy had ended up in severe pain for several days afterward.

Filling three plastic containers with water, and grabbing some bread and dried fruit Kabuto walked out of his house and made his way to the Hyuuga compound.

His apprehension continued until the white haired boy suddenly found himself blinking back tears. He didn't want to recruit his new friend. He didn't want another person to live the kind of life he did. Lying to people, doing things to them behind their backs. And the people were always friends. He was a ninja already. A spy. Sasori said he was easily Chuunin level. But he wasn't fighting enemies or fulfilling contracts for monetary gain. He was sneaking around and hurting the people he was growing to love. He had no idea what Sasori's plans were. And that scared him.

Entering the Hyuuga clan compound he turned onto the road Yota's small house was on. But instead of an empty afternoon residential street he found a crime scene complete with the chief of police and the head of the Hyuuga clan.

Kabuto hung his head and cursed. "What else can go wrong today?"

Walking closer the young boy frowned when he realized they were standing outside of Yota's house. Fugaku Uchiha was writing notes in a scroll and Hiashi Hyuuga was talking with a couple of the other policemen. Kabuto stopped a few feet from the door and glanced in.

"Yota is inside, Kabuto, I don't know if he really feels like playing today, but you can ask him." Fugaku spoke to him without looking up from his scroll.

"Umm. Thank-you Lord Fugaku." Kabuto bowed to him and stepped into the doorway. "Yota? It's me, Kabuto."

A head peaked out from behind a doorway and disappeared. A minute later Yota ran out of the house, past Kabuto and down the street. Kabuto blinked and looked back at the gathered men in confusion.

Hiashi spoke in his usual stern voice. "It's okay. He's… been through a lot in the last few hours. If he gets dizzy see if you can talk him into going to the hospital. We're pretty sure he has a concussion."

"O…kay. I wanted him to train with me. Umm…" Kabuto's voice was uncertain. He did not like being surprised and seeing the policemen standing around was unexpected. He glanced up at Fugaku. "Have you…." Kabuto looked down at the ground.

Fugaku sighed. "We still haven't found Itachi."

Kabuto bowed again to the man. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up a painful subject."

"Its okay, Kabuto. Everyone is concerned and wants to hear good news." He watched with mixed feelings as Kabuto ran down the narrow road.

Running through the Hyuuga compound's gate Kabuto saw no sign of Yota. He continued on to the village gate since they usually went outside to the training grounds to practice. When he reached the gate Yota was impatiently waiting for him.

"Yota, what is going on?" Kabuto was a little put out. Seeing two clan lords outside of the house of a branch member, then having to run halfway across the village was a little odd, to say the least.

Yota sighed and wiped his eyes on his sleeve. He then walked over to the guard's desk and signed the "exit" notebook and walked out of the gate. He didn't answer until they were a half mile down the road.

"My father killed himself last night. He got in a fight with me and mother. Mother was drunk…she's an alcoholic. He thinks…thought I was a looser and refused to come watch me train to see how much I've improved. He kept hitting me and I passed out. When I woke up mother was so drunk she couldn't tell left from right and father had stabbed himself in the heart with his katana. I ran to the head man's house and told him and he and other Hyuuga's took the body away this morning and buried it somewhere. Lord Hiashi told me that cowards don't deserve a proper burial. Mother got mad and started hitting me saying it was all my fault." Yota looked at Kabuto, and noticed that the boy was looking at him closely as he talked.

"Yota…"

Yota wiped his eyes again and continued talking. His voice suddenly went from sullen to an angry hiss. "I hate my family, I hate my clan and I hate this stupid village. I want to leave but I can't because of this stupid seal!" The boy ripped off his bandages, revealing a seal on his forehead. Kabuto gasped. He had heard rumors about it, but seeing it was still a surprise.

Kabuto watched Yota for a while. His research told him that many of the Hyuuga felt antipathy toward their clan. Apparently that was true. He decided to push Yota to see how far he could go before the boy snapped.

"But your father is dead now. Will your mother die soon, as well?" Kabuto's voice was eerily pleasant.

Yota stopped walking and looked down at the younger boy. He didn't remember much about what happened the night before, except anger. An anger so overwhelming that, when mixed with years of frustration… Then he passed out.

"She might." He answered in an even voice. "I heard alcohol poisoning is common among alcoholics. She has already been admitted to the hospital four times for it."

The two boys continued walking down the road and soon Kabuto maneuvered them onto a trail that went up into the hills north of the village.

Kabuto couldn't get Yota's story out of his head. It was a good story. It was believable. The apprehension constricting his chest fell away and he suddenly felt happy. Here was a boy that could work with Sasori. Unlike himself, he would probably be happy to do so. Maybe Sasori would like Yota better than him and he could be freed? Well, it was a long shot.

"So Yota. You killed your father and got away with it. Good going. I think we can work together after all."

"It was self defense. I didn't want to do it." The boy didn't even try to deny it. "He pulled the katana and said mother and I would be better off dead. Then he could remarry and have a normal life. Hiashi told me to tell people the other story."

"That one was good too. You are truly skilled Yota. I don't know why your clan thinks you are a looser." Kabuto was pushing it, and he knew it. As much as he hated his life as a spy, he loved playing the games that came with it.

"What are you playing at, Kabuto? You're only seven-years-old. What do you know?" Yota was getting angry.

Kabuto smiled. "I am playing a game that you are invited to join in on. It sounds like you will have a lot of fun. After we rescue Itachi, I'll let you in on the details."

Yota looked at his companion. "How about you tell me the details now?"

"Because right now our mission is to retrieve Itachi, at all costs."

Yota stopped walking again and stared at Kabuto as he pulled out a kunai and pointed it at the boy's throat. "How about you tell me now, and I won't slit your throat."

Kabuto gave a grim laugh. "That's more like it. Yota, I am a spy for a man named Sasori. He is working for a secret organization whose purpose is unknown to me. But I do know that he has a deep resentment toward Konoha. Just like you do. I am recruiting you to work for him, alongside me."

"What?" Fear suddenly gripped Yota and he felt his mouth go dry. If he was caught…even knowing the little he did now he would be executed. Either by Hiashi or the Hokage. Or both. But… if he could take down the village before he died… The hatred he had felt toward his father the night before returned. It had been an accident. His father had attacked him and then pulled a sword on him. Something in his brain snapped. He wasn't sure he even remembered what happened properly. It all seemed so far away. Like he was watching someone else grab the sword and plunge it into his father's chest. He had passed out from his injuries immediately afterward.

When he woke up, the sword was still sticking out of the body. His mother was walking around the living room, drunk. She didn't know anything had happened until the other clan members came to dispose of the body. Hiashi had suggested he go to the hospital to have his bruises looked at. He also suggested that boy had a concussion after looking in his eyes. But he had called the dead man a coward and told Yota that if he grew up to be a benefit to the clan instead of a liability like his father then all would be well. Hiashi knew what had happened and was going to overlook it. That also bothered Yota, and made him hate the man even more than he already did. The clan lord didn't care if it was an accident or on purpose as long as the coward was out of his hair. Yota felt his father deserved more than that, and would have gotten it if he hadn't been born a Hyuuga.

"You heard me." Kabuto's smile didn't waver. He knew that if it came down to it he could easily disarm the older boy, and even kill him if he needed to. Although Sasori would be very disappointed if he did that.

"I accept. I will do anything this Sasori says, as long as it damages the village before I die."

"What makes you think you are going to die?" That was not something he expected to hear from Yota.

"I'm not an idiot, Kabuto. Don't treat me like one. I know what fate awaits spies, in the end. I also…I also have always felt, deep down, that I would die before I grew up. I thought it was going to happen last night when father attacked me, but it didn't. But Kabuto, as I said, I will accept death if I can get what I want before it happens."

Kabuto felt his apprehension return. He had no idea how massively messed up Yota really was. This was not a boy you wanted to be left alone with. He had a death wish, and was willing to take out others to get that wish. He would make a good Ninja, but as a spy...well, only time would tell. He would need a lot of training.

Yota interrupted Kabuto's thoughts by changing the subject. "Now tell me what kind of trouble Itachi has gotten himself into. I wouldn't want my eternal rival to die before we have our rematch."

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"She was an evil woman, Okita, she was evil! Evil! I looked all over the village for her and I kept seeing her. I had to get her image out of my mind, but I couldn't. Every time I thought I destroyed her she would pop up again!" The giant had been ranting for a couple hours. The life story he was giving Itachi changed with each re-telling, but the young boy had been able to pull out some events he thought might be true.

The man had been a ninja, but despite being powerful, had trouble successfully completing missions. His pay was, therefore, low. He had a wife and children (although how many was still a mystery). She had left him at some point, taking the children. He was hunting her down so that she would come back to him. However, he was also saying that he was destroying her and the children as punishment for leaving him.

In between his ranting and raving the kidnapper stuffed food in his mouth and drank copious amounts of sake. He had quite a lot of food, actually, and it was making Itachi's own hunger and thirst become overwhelming. Staring at the food the boy realized he was so hungry and thirsty that his stomach wasn't even growling anymore. It felt like it wasn't even there, except for the waves of nausea and dizziness that kept washing over him to occasionally remind him that his stomach did indeed still exist.

He blinked back unwanted tears as he watched the man rip at a turkey leg with his teeth. He really wanted some food, but he refused to beg or even ask for any. Kabuto was coming and he was bringing food.

Itachi swayed as another wave of dizziness pass over him. Placing his hands on the ground to brace himself he went back to watching the big man eat. He could see the man's mouth moving, but he was no longer listening to the words. He wanted food more than he wanted the kunai to free his leg. He wanted water more than he wanted freedom. Tears started to roll down his face and he reached up with his arm to wipe them away. He drew his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around his legs and put his head on his knees. He tried to stop crying, but he didn't have any energy left. He knew help was coming, but why did he still feel so hopeless?

"What's wrong? Okita?" The kidnapper knelt down next to Itachi, putting his hand on the boy's shoulder. Itachi looked up at him, tears blurring his vision. His eyes widened when he saw the piece of bread in the man's hand. Quickly he grabbed it and scooted away. But before he could stuff it in his mouth it was pulled out of his hands.

Picking up a stick from the ground the man walked over to Itachi and started hitting him. "Bad boys don't get food! I told you that before! Right before you died. Why didn't you stay dead Okita!" The man was yelling obscenities and threats as he repeatedly hit Itachi.

The pain was intense. It was worse than the beating he got when he had cried at the execution. He tried to get away, but the kidnapper was standing on the rope, preventing him from moving, and his hand was around the boy's throat. He refused to cry out and instead tried to concentrate on the inside of his mind instead. Then the images came to him. Images of the man's death. Images of the man cut into hundreds of pieces and a triumphant Itachi standing over his remains.

"That should teach you! Now hurry up and starve you worthless sack of shit! You left me! You went with Sugaku when she left me! You could have stayed and you didn't!" He threw the stick into the woods and walked away.

Itachi laid down on the ground breathing heavily. He felt weaker than he had ever felt in his entire life. He had cuts all over his body now, and his pajamas were ripped up. But Itachi was feeling a new determination. When Kabuto came with the Kunai and the tag, he would free himself and attack. He would kill the man who did this too him. He would kill him a hundred different ways. He would then bring him back to life and kill him again. Over and over. Closing his eyes Itachi fell into a restless sleep.

The sun was low in the sky and sunset was not far off. Two small figures snuck through the woods, and one of them bent down to the ground and picked something up.

A rock bounced off his forehead waking Itachi up with a start. He sat up quickly and looked around the clearing. He could see the kidnapper passed out asleep, a dozen sake bottles surrounded him.

"Itachi!" A whispered voice called out behind him and he jumped again. "It's okay, it's us. Quick, I'll cut the rope and we can escape." Itachi turned around to see Kabuto kneeling a couple feet away from him, in his hand was the precious kunai. His salvation. His revenge.

Wiping his face on what remained of his sleeve he felt an immense sense of relief. Finally, he would no longer be helpless. And when he returned home he would take steps to prevent something like this from ever happening again.

Itachi no longer felt hungry or thirsty.

"Give me the kunai."

He no longer felt any pain.

"I'll cut the rope."

He no long felt anything. Except an overwhelming desire to spill blood.

"Then I'll slit the god damned bastards throat."

A kunai was pressed into his hand and he quickly got to work on the rope. It only took a minute to saw away at the fibers, and another minute to extract his ankle from the knot.

Itachi stood up on his bare feet and faced the kidnapper.

"Let's go now, Itachi. You're hurt pretty badly. Leave him to your father." Kabuto stood a few feet from the boy, afraid to get any closer. Yota, however, wasn't. He walked right up to Itachi and handed him a second kunai.

Yota looked Itachi in the eyes as he spoke to Kabuto. "Kabuto, this is what it is like to grow up in a clan. This is what he and I live with every day of our lives. Power and more power, strength, and war. Itachi has no choice but to kill this man. His father expects it of him."

Itachi returned Yota's gaze. He was right. His father would expect nothing less than the total destruction of the man who tortured him. "You can leave if you want, Kabuto, but Itachi and I are staying." Yota finally shifted his gaze to Kabuto, who, surprisingly enough was smirking.

"You misunderstand me, Yota. I have no intention of standing in Itachi's way." Yota smiled and walked to the edge of the clearing.

Itachi looked around the area, estimating its size, making note of obstructions, looking for advantages. He then looked inside himself to estimate his chakra level. It was low. His ninjutsu would be limited. He would have to rely on Taijutsu. He frowned. That would be limited as well. Even though his determination had overcome his physical exhaustion and hunger he could not deny the fact that he would not be able to last as long in a fight as he normally would.

He went over various strategies in his mind and decided to mix his ninjutsu and Taijutsu. 'I should be able to increase the effectiveness of my attacks by surprising him. Plus he is very drunk right now which will slow down his reflexes. ' He continued to look at the big man, still asleep on the ground. 'His size could be a problem. I can't reach his neck or heart. I'll have to knock him down somehow.'

Looking at the unconscious man, Itachi knew that as soon as he approached him he would awaken. He may be a fat drunk, but he was first, and foremost a highly skilled ninja.

The man stirred in his sleep, then slowly opened one eye. He had sensed someone staring at him. Sugaku! She was standing in the clearing, smiling at him, with two children standing next to her. But who was that in front of her? Oh yeah, Okita. Standing up unsteadily, he quickly threw himself to the left as something small and dark sped past him.

"Ow!" He cried out and looked at the blood dripping from a deep cut on his forearm.

Itachi was able to make about seven quick strikes with his kunai before the kidnapper was able to clear his mind enough to realize what was going on. One particular deep cut deeply into one of his shins and the man was unable to use one leg properly. Falling to his knees he reached in his shirt for his kunai, but found none. He must have left them back at the house. No. Sugaku took them! She stole them from him so he couldn't do his job and bring home money for food.

"You evil little brats! I'll starve all of you! Sugaku set you up to this didn't she?" He punched at Itachi, landing a blow and knocking him to the ground. Itachi immediately stood up and did a quick transportation jutsu that put him behind the large man. He quickly swiped his kunai across the man's back and jumped away. The man turned around and lunged at him but missed.

Before the man could turn back around Itachi quickly appeared in front of him and kicked him in the neck. Coughing, the kidnapper gasped for air as Itachi jumped behind him and stabbed both of the kunai in the man's back. Yota quickly threw him two more kunai, which Itachi easily caught without even looking.

The kidnapper used an earth jutsu to disappear in to the ground. Yota activated his Byakugan and looked around.

"Itachi! He's under you! Watch out!" Yota yelled and crouched down so he could get a better view.

Itachi jumped up and put as much force as he could into his arms as he swung the kunai down. At that moment the kidnapper chose to pop up from the ground. The kunai entered the man's head, cracking his skull and lodging in his brain. He was dead instantly.

Landing on the ground on his stomach the boy crawled over to his tormentor and put his hand out toward Yota, silently asking for another kunai. Yota threw him one, curious to see what would happen next.

The ex-ninja had been caught halfway through his earth transportation jutsu and his body below his chest was still in the ground. His head had fallen forward and his chin was resting on his chest. Itachi took in the site and breathed a sigh of relief. Closing his eyes he knelt in front of the corpse and continued to breathe deeply for several minutes. It was over. He did it. His father would be so proud of him. Madara would congratulate him. He felt like he could do anything. After all, he had just taken down a seven foot giant. The police hadn't even been able to get him.

Opening his eyes he saw Kabuto and Yota standing a few feet away smiling at him. Three kids just did something the police couldn't. Albeit they did have the bracelets to communicate, and Madara had coordinated the whole rescue, but still… but still…

"I did this. Didn't I?" Itachi's voice was uncertain.

Yota stepped up quickly. "Yes you did. It was amazing. You are everything I thought you were!"

Itachi smiled. A real smile that he felt from the heart. Real ninja killed, and he had just killed. It was what he always wanted.

The sun set behind the hills as Itachi lifted the kunai and cut the man's throat. Blood dripped down the man's torso and Itachi held the head up and watched.

"What are you doing?" Kabuto frowned. The way Itachi was watching the blood was kind of eerie. The boy's eyes seemed to glaze over. Slowly Itachi brought one finger to the stream of blood and touched it. Running his finger through the blood he thought about how wet it was, how beautifully red. Like the red he saw when he looked at the sun with his eyes closed. Another wave of nausea made the boy sway a little.

For some reason Itachi didn't understand he started to raise his hand. Yota grabbed it before he could put his finger in his mouth.

"Kabuto has some water for you Itachi. I'll hold the head up and you can have something good to drink." Yota was a little concerned about the boy. He had seen him sway and his face had gone very white. His tattered pajamas showed many cuts and bruises and lots of blood.

Kabuto walked over as Itachi released the head into Yota's strong grip and sat back. "Wash your mouth out a few times, then take small sips. You don't want to make yourself sick."

Yota lifted his kunai up to the head to make another cut, but Itachi stopped him.

"I'll cut off the head." His voice was horse and almost inaudible.

"Why do you want the head?" Kabuto thought it was a sick thing to do. The boy already killed him, what else did he want?

"ANBU always cut off the head and bring it back to show that they killed their target. That's why I cut his neck, to drain some of the blood first." Kabuto and Yota cut a section of the blanket and wrapped the severed head in it. They left the kunai in it, agreeing that it added to the "presentation".

After Itachi had eaten a little bit and drank some more water Yota carried the exhausted boy to the stream and Kabuto removed his tattered clothes and washed his cuts out then used his knowledge of medical jutsu to stop the bleeding. Examining the small boy's feet he discovered that they had several deep gashes and were filthy from two days spent barefoot in the woods. Cleaning Itachi's feet as best he could he realized that there was no way the boy would be able to walk home.

By the time Kabuto had finished cleaning Itachi's wounds the boy was starting to run a fever and couldn't stay awake. Not to mention he was now shivering. Kabuto wondered if feeding him had been a bad idea. The water was the right thing… but should he have given him food or waited until they got to the hospital? He should have brought some soldier pills.

Looking at Yota he saw him sitting on the ground with his head resting on his knees. He remembered what Hiashi had said about the boy having a concussion. Not to mention the shock of having killed… of the previous night. Kabuto had trouble grasping the fact of what Yota had done, even if it had been self-defense.

"Yota, are you okay? Do you have a headache or dizziness? Hiashi mentioned you probably have a concussion."

"Huh? No. I'm fine. Just tired. I haven't slept in almost 48 hours. And we need to get Itachi home. He looks really sick." Yota stood up and walked over to where the two boys were sitting. "Wrap Itachi in the blanket and I'll carry him on my back. You carry the head."

Kabuto looked at the neatly wrapped head and scowled. Yota and Itachi smiled at him.

"We've got a long walk and you are only a couple inches taller than Itachi. It'll be easier if I take the heavy load and you take the light one."

"Yeah, you're right. It's just… gross." Kabuto laughed at himself.

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Fugaku stepped through the brush to look at the two dead bodies. Two women in their thirties. Their throats were slit open, but otherwise they appeared unmolested. The women looked enough alike that Fugaku's first inclination was to think they were sisters, but he decided it was probably coincidence. The murderer was probably looking for a certain type of person to kill.

Still, Fugaku couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief that the bodies were not that of his son. He swallowed a couple soldier pills and walked back through the brush to the road. The clan lord had not slept in two or three days. He wasn't sure anymore. There had been so much to do – it was like the village had woken up one morning and decided to go on a crime spree. Riots, thefts, kidnapping, murder, patricide….what else could go wrong? Crime in Konoha was usually higher than in a regular non-shinobi village, but this was ridiculous.

The sun set and sky started to turn midnight blue. What if Itachi was dead? Mikoto couldn't have anymore children. Not without a repeat of the problems she had with Sasuke. And he sure as hell couldn't either. He didn't want another child anyway. He wanted Itachi. He wanted his genius son.

Walking up the road he went over the kidnapping clues again. For the millionth time. Nothing stood out. He thought about everything they had been through together in the last two years. The gathering at the hideout, training, and he remembered hurting his son. Cringing, he suddenly felt very guilty. How could he have done that? Broken a four-year-old's arm? He couldn't defend himself yet. It would be years before he was at that level. What was he thinking?

Fugaku stopped walking and sat down on the side of the road and put his head in his hands. He had been taking too many soldier pills and he started to recognize the first sign of overdose. Anxiety. He had made a promise to himself not to sleep until he found his son, and he would keep it.

The sound of someone running on gravel caught Fugaku's attention and he stood up. It was coming from the road ahead of him. Stepping into the middle of the road he caught a small white haired boy as he ran past him. Setting him back down on his feet he knelt down in front of him.

"Where is Yota?" The two boys had supposedly run off earlier to train, but Yota was injured and had refused to go to the hospital and Hiashi had refused to press the matter.

"He collapsed back up the road a couple miles. Lord Fugaku! We found Itachi! Yota was carrying him but he's sick now too! You have to get them to the hospital!" Kabuto grabbed Fugaku's hand and tried to pull him up the road.

"Kabuto, go back down the road and tell the policemen there to follow you to where they are. I'll run up ahead and see what I can do until they come." They both took off running in opposite directions.

Fugaku reached the two boys and skidded to a stop by their side. They were laying unconscious next to each other, it looked like Kabuto had pressed them together so they could share a thin blanket for warmth. Both boys were running fevers and shivering. He reached out and put his hand on his son's head.

"It's you. You're really okay. I… Itachi I'm sorry I was using you to bait the kidnapper. I'm sorry…" Fugaku cleared his throat and continued to stroke his son's hair.

Itachi slowly opened his eyes and smiled. "Father. I…" his eyes closed, then opened again. "Killed him." The boy's eyes roamed to a bundle, also wrapped in a blanket and sitting a couple feet away.

Fugaku reached for the bundle and opened it. Shock quickly turned to pride. His son had killed the murderer. His son! Not someone else's kid. His!

"That's my boy, Itachi. You are my son. You are my heir. I am very proud of you." He put his hand on the boy's shoulder, but pulled back when Itachi winced in pain. Lowering the blanket a little he could see the cuts on his chest. He pulled the blanket completely off and stared. The boy had been beaten rather savagely. Fugaku reached down and put his hand on his son's chest, over the cuts. It must have taken a lot of determination to overcome this kind of pain to fight well enough to kill.

"Oh my God!" A cry of shock marked the policemen's arrival as one of them looked over Fugaku's shoulder. "I'll carry him to the hospital. You! Get the other boy." The two men quickly picked up the boys without any further conversation and took off running.

Kabuto closed his eyes and sighed in relief. He turned around to leave, but Fugaku stopped him.

"Kabuto, tell me everything you know."

The boy looked up at Itachi's father and wondered what the man wanted to know. "Everything" was a very broad category.

"Well, Yota and I were walking. Yota didn't feel like training. So we were walking instead. We found Itachi and the kidnapper. The man was huge! He was drunk asleep so we snuck up and gave Itachi a kunai. I…um…I stole some tags from my father. I wanted to wrap them around my kunai to see if it would make me better at throwing them. Itachi said the rope was chakra enhanced so I found a tag to counteract that and put it on the kunai. Itachi was then able to cut the rope and free himself. He then attacked the bastard and killed him. The man was going to starve him to death. I gave Itachi some water and dried fruit afterward and washed his wounds. Yota tried to carry him, but he said he had been up for 48 hours and then he collapsed and I couldn't wake him up again." Kabuto took a deep breath and looked Fugaku in the eye.

"Hmm. He wasn't bleeding. I take it you have been studying under your father?"

"Yes. I'm going to be a medical specialist."

"How far up the road is the corpse?" Kabuto's story was full of holes, but Fugaku decided to take it for what it was. He knew neither Kabuto nor Yota were in cahoots with the man so the only alternative was that somehow they got word about his location. But how?

"About an hour if you walk." Kabuto looked back down at the ground. "Can I go now? I want to talk to father and see how Itachi and Yota are. I know Itachi will be okay, but I'm worried about Yota. He wouldn't wake up after he collapsed."

"Kabuto. Yota's mother took an overdose of illegal drugs an hour after you guys left. She's dead." Fugaku watched as Kabuto's face slowly registered the information, then looked up at him in shock. "Both his parents were drug addicts and alcoholics. Hiashi has been trying to deal with them internally, but last night things got out of hand. I don't think Yota really understands what happened. We tried to question him, but he is still very much in shock. Finding yourself in a situation where you have to defend yourself from a mortal attack from someone you love and trust is more than most people can handle. Yota's mother couldn't handle it. It remains to see what happens to Yota."

"I understand." Kabuto frowned. A brief flicker of something, a memory perhaps, made it's way into his consciousness for a second. Sasori said he was evil – did he mean that he had killed someone who trusted him?

"Do you, Kabuto?" Fugaku frowned, a little disturbed at the expression on the boy's face. "I told you this because you probably have a better chance of getting through to him than his clan does."

"I never knew Yota's life was this messed up. He never talked about it, or complained. I do understand, Lord Fugaku. After all, my life is messed up too. I do know what it's like." Kabuto smiled half heartedly.

"Go ahead then. It's late but your father can get you in to see them. Tell him I'll be by in a few hours. First, though, I want to see to the corpse of the asshole that kidnapped my son."

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The next day Mikoto was sitting in a small tea shop in the Fire country capital. She had borrowed a stroller and Sasuke was currently comfortably nestled in a thin blanket watching his mother drink some tea. For once he was being quiet. She hoped the change of scenery would keep him occupied for a little while. It was a nice day, not a cloud in the sky, and although it was a little chilly a lot of people were still walking around without coats.

The woman's thoughts turned to her eldest son. She had slept poorly since learning about his abduction. First Sasuke, now Itachi. What kind of game was Fugaku playing, anyway?

'I should have brought Itachi with me.' The silent mantra had gone through her head a hundred times already. But would he have come? She had to admit that she didn't know him well enough to answer that. Fugaku had been drilling the boy with constant lessons in Taijutsu and Uchiha propaganda that she finally had to admit she didn't know him anymore.

"I don't even know his favorite color." Sighing she put her cup on the table. "It used to be red."

"What used to be red?" A tall man with dark hair and black eyes sat down in the chair across from hers.

Mikoto blinked twice when she realized she had spoken out loud in public.

"Oh, uh, my oldest son's favorite color." She blushed at her faux pas and looked down at the table. "Um. I usually don't talk to myself, you now."

"Oh, I'm sure you don't. But sometimes there are so many thoughts in our heads that they escape on their own. And you look like someone with a full head." The stranger gave her a very charming smile and Mikoto had to smile back.

"As far as pick-up lines go, that was pretty good." She chuckled lightly. "I'm married, though." She held up her left hand to show a diamond wedding ring.

"Ah! All the good ones are taken so young. I haven't a chance!" He threw up his hands in mock surrender, then smirked. "But I am, all the same, a very good listener." He paused for a minute, looking the woman in the eye. "If you want to talk, that is."

"I'm Mikoto Uchiha, and this here is my youngest son, Sasuke. Who are you?" She asked politely, unsure about why a stranger would come, unbidden, to her table and invite himself to sit down and talk.

"Oh, my name is Tobi. No last name." He gave a big smile, as he signaled the waitress for more tea.

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**Well, Itachi has won his first ninja fight and took out the evil man. **

**Next week we find out who the kidnapper was, Shisui returns to an excited Itachi, and Itachi reveals what he has learned from his kidnap adventure and how it made him stronger. Also, why is Tobi talking to Mikoto? **

**Please review! Itachi will Ameratersu Sasuke for each review I don't get! Of course, he's limited to only 2 so…if I don't get 2 reviews then Sasuke gets it! (laughs hysterically). And for those people who don't review because they want Sasuke to be hurt – Itachi will hug Sasuke for each review I don't get. Ha! Beat that!**

**Put the story in your alerts and you will get an e-mail when the next update is ready.**


	19. Chapter 19 Never Again

**Last week Kabuto and Yota brought Itachi a special kunai, thus allowing him to escape. Itachi then killed his captor. **

**Thank-you for all the reviews, fav's, alerts, or for just reading. You make me so happy (sniff, sniff xD) **

**I will write short stories occasionally as the mood hits me, but they won't get in the way of this story. Check out my profile for the links. **

**Disclaimer – Kishimoto owns Naruto.**

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**Chapter 19 Never Again**

The letter came four days after her son had been found. Fugaku had waited _four days_ to write a letter and tell her that her son was alive and well. Closing her eyes Mikoto struggled to hold back her anger. Kisa frowned as she watched her friend slowly clench her fists and then punch the wall. Walking out of the house Mikoto paused on the porch, then turned around and walked back in. Before she could say anything Kisa spoke in a soft voice, telling her that she would watch over Sasuke until she came back. Mikoto muttered a "thank-you" and left.

Mikoto needed to get away for a few hours. She needed to think. Although she wasn't sure what she needed to think about. She wasn't sure there was really anything to think about. Obviously Fugaku no longer considered her important in Itachi's life. He had said as much when they argued a week ago in Konoha, but receiving the letter four days after Itachi had been rescued was nothing more than a slap in the face. No, it was more than that. It was a punch in the face, the stomach, and a stab in the back.

He was being selfish and possessive. Keeping his son to himself so that no one else could get close to him. She knew he wished to suppress the boy's emotions, to turn him into a ninja the clan and the village could be proud of. However, she knew that while Itachi was not an overly expressive child, he could be moved to tears much easier than Shisui, who could be considered an expressive child. What did all of this mean?

The houses and shops slowly disappeared as Mikoto kept walking. Two hours later she found herself deep in the woods, without really remembering how she had gotten there. So deep in thought had she been that it felt as though she had just stepped out of the house a few minutes ago.

"My lovely Mikoto. Why are you out in the woods alone? Shouldn't you have the valiant Sasuke with you for protection?" Tobi stepped into view, causing Mikoto to step back a couple feet in shock.

"What are you doing here? Were you following me?" Caught off guard she spoke the words in a tired voice. She didn't feel like talking to anyone or being friendly. She also wasn't afraid. Mikoto was a powerful kunoichi and did not fear a fight.

Stepping forward he quickly closed the distance between the two. Standing a couple feet from her he looked down at her troubled face. He had seen her leave the village and followed her. She hadn't even sensed him. Worried, he kept his distance.

"Why didn't you notice me? You must be more careful. You're children depend on you." His voice deepened as he took on a lecturing tone.

Mikoto looked at him questioningly. "Sasuke is safe with my cousin. Itachi…I am worried about him, but I no longer have a say in his upbringing. But, what do you care, really? You have nothing to do with the matters of my clan."

"I care about…everything that has to do with you." Tobi spoke the words softly as he looked into her eyes.

The woman gulped, and attempted to step further away from him. Grabbing her shoulders he held her in position.

"What do you want? Who are you really?" She thought back to the meeting at the tea shop. He had been very polite and had even bought Sasuke some crackers to munch on, even though the waitress had suggested something sweeter. Something clicked. How did he know that Sasuke doesn't like sweet things?

"Calm down, Mikoto, I truly do not mean you any harm. Please believe me." His voice was calming and Mikoto stopped struggling.

"Then answer my questions!" She really didn't feel like arguing with him. She was exhausted and upset from Fugaku's letter and just wanted to be left alone.

"I am Tobi. That is all." He tightened his grip on her arms. "What is wrong, Mikoto? This depression does not suit you." Releasing one of her shoulders he reached up and ran his hand through her dark black hair.

Sighing she decided that maybe if she told him he would leave. "I…received a letter from my…from Fugaku. My…his…our son Itachi was kidnapped because of something stupid Fugaku did. He was found, but…but…" Mikoto couldn't hold it in anymore and the tears started falling. "He waited four days to tell me! Four days! I'm not…I'm not…a part of my sons life anymore." She stepped forward and put her face on Tobi's chest, gripping his shirt as she sobbed.

Tobi wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. Outside, he was the caring friend who wanted to keep her safe. Inside, he was fuming. He was angry that Fugaku would treat her like this. He was angry because Fugaku would never hold her like this. He was angry because she wasn't his. He was angry because he was not supposed to care. He wasn't supposed to feel this way. He was using Itachi to an extent that Fugaku would never in his wildest dreams consider. He was a hundred times worse than the man Mikoto was angry at.

So why, when Itachi had told him is mother was in the capital, did he go out of his way to meet with her? He had more important things to do. He was still in the process of recruiting members for his organization. His "partner" was a nervous sort who still suffered from the traumas of being an orphan – the man needed to be watched. Then there was his "student" in the village hidden in the stones. The man whom he had hired to teach him was convinced the boy was insane and was threatening to quit if the child blew him up one more time. He needed to find a new guardian for the boy, without the boy knowing what was going on.

So why was he tightening his embrace and burying his face in her hair? Why was he kissing her? Why was she kissing him back?

After a few minutes they pulled away from each other.

"Mikoto. Return to Fugaku. He may not be able to admit it, but he needs you. And as for Itachi, I think 'Out of sight, out of mind' applies here. If you are there and he sees you everyday you will always be a part of his consciousness. If you leave, he will forget you and be consumed by Fugaku. Sasuke needs his brother also." Stepping back he took one last look at the now-smiling woman, then walked away.

"Thank-you, Tobi." He almost stopped walking when he heard the words but he kept his resolve and continued on down the path.

Once he was a ways away he sat down and put his mask and gloves back on. Then he heard the voice. The voice echoing in his mind, calling him a traitor. Telling him he was weak. Closing his eyes he listened to the voice. He remembered the voice, and right now he welcomed it. Not the words, they cut too deeply for that, but the sound of person who it once belonged to. And the memories.

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Four days after he was dropped off at the hospital Itachi was finally allowed to leave. He had recovered quickly with the help of Dr. Yakushi, Kabuto's father. There wasn't even any scarring. On the surface that is. However, inside of his mind Itachi had spent many hours trying to figure out ways he could have prevented the whole incident from happening.

Yota was still in the hospital. His concussion turned out to be worse than first thought and Dr. Yakushi had to drill a hole in his skull to drain some excess fluid that had accumulated. He was also very upset over his parent's deaths and whenever he woke up he would cry and try to get out of bed. The doctor finally medicated him enough to induce a light coma so the boy could recover from his injuries. He would be healed in a few days, but what the mental condition of the ten-year-old boy would be was still unknown.

To make matters worse, his fellow clansmen had burned down his family's home. Everything inside the house was gone. Yota didn't know yet, but when Itachi and Kabuto had found out they were livid. Clans were supposed to be family, working together and being nice to each other. Well, that was Kabuto's take on things, anyway. Itachi, after hearing Kabuto speak realized that what lay under the surface could be completely different. Well, the gist of it was that Yota, when he recovered, no longer had a home. Or a family.

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Itachi had finally decided on a plan of action that would prevent him from being caught off guard again. Digging through his dresser and closet he chose a pair of pants and a shirt that he would wear instead of pajamas. Both garments had plenty of pockets. He found his weapons belt and attached several kunai to it, then hid throwing stars in his pant's pockets. Finding a small medical kit in the bathroom he also tucked that into one of the pockets as well. He realized he would have to buy the rest of the needed items and went looking for his father.

Fugaku was sitting on the porch outside of the living room when he felt his son approach.

"Itachi, what's on your mind? You look like you've been thinking hard." Fugaku returned his son's serious look.

"I need to borrow some soldier pills until I can go to the store, and do we have any books on plants?"

"Soldier pills? Itachi, those are a controlled substance. You must be at least Genin level to be in possession of such a thing, and even then only Chuunin and above are allowed to buy them." Fugaku wondered what his son was up to.

"Oh." Itachi wondered where his father kept them and when he was leaving for work. Fugaku sighed, sensing his son's train of thought.

"Why do want them?" He closed his eyes and spoke in a defeated tone of voice.

"I'm putting together my plan to keep me from being helpless again. I'm sleeping in my clothes and I'm not going anywhere without kunai, throwing starts, medical kit, soldier pills, and I want to know how to survive in the woods without any supplies."

'Probably some sort of trauma induced stress.' The clan leader looked up at the sky for a few minutes. 'Maybe I'll just humor him for a while. Hopefully this isn't going to turn into paranoia, the boy already has a few other problems.' He thought about his son's insomnia and possible sociopathic tendencies.

"Okay Itachi. I have an unopened soldier pill kit. Unopened, as in never used, as in _sealed_. It will remain _sealed_ unless you are truly in need of them. I will check it occasionally. Also, with the sharingan I am skilled enough to tell if you have ingested any. Do I make myself understood? If you disobey me you will be beaten severely. I will not accept insubordination from my heir." Fugaku stood up as he spoke and looked down on his son's surprised face.

"Yes, I understand. But…what…" Itachi couldn't think of how to ask why they were so dangerous if everyone used them.

"I have a booklet on the proper use of soldier pills. When you read it you will understand why they are a controlled substance. Basically, son, they have the potential to become addictive and when that happens the person almost always dies. When used, the pills work with your physical body to alter it. For example, blood pills speed up the production of red blood cells, thus replacing lost blood much quicker than the body normally would. It can help a person who would otherwise bleed to death, but if used incorrectly it could also cause severe heart problems and hardening of the arteries, leading to a very painful death." Fugaku lead Itachi into a large room in a part of the house that Itachi had never been in before. There were bookcases on every wall, as well as several bookcases standing in the middle of the room.

"It looks like a library! How come I never came here before?" Itachi's eyes were wide and Fugaku had to smile. It was the same look he gave when a piece of candy was placed in front of him.

"Most of these books are too advanced for you. However, I believe you are ready to start reading some of them. You may pick out the ones you want. They are cataloged in that book on the desk. If you don't understand what you are reading, put the book back and pick a different one. Also, these are only for Uchiha. Shisui may read from the collection as well as other Uchiha who come periodically. Understand?"

"Yes father." Itachi was walking through the rows looking at the titles. Most were different books on Taijutsu and Ninjutsu, but he quickly found a section on botany and pulled out a random book.

Fugaku walked over to the boy and handed him a small paperback book. "This is the book I was talking about. It should answer most of your questions about soldier pills. Wait here and I'll bring you the pills themselves."

"Yes. Thank-you father." The boy bowed to his father, then opened the book he was just given.

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The next afternoon when Fugaku got off work he found his son in the living surrounded by about twenty books on botany and outdoor survival.

"Good afternoon father." Itachi greeted his father, then turned back to his book.

Fugaku frowned. "Have you eaten today, Itachi?"

The boy looked up at him, then glanced at a clock sitting on a shelf. Looking back at his father in surprise he shook his head. "I…I've been sitting here for six hours and I didn't even realize it."

"Come on then, let's go get some barbecue beef. You have something to celebrate, my son."

When they were situated in their booth at the restaurant Fugaku handed Itachi a bank draft. "This is your account after I deposited the reward money for killing an A-rank missing-nin." The man grinned at his son. "I noticed you haven't spent your New Years money yet. Are you turning stingy on us?"

"I… umm. No I just forgot about it. I should probably have kept it as cash instead of depositing it. But, so many zeros! Was that guy really A-rank? I mean, he was powerful, but still. Logically I shouldn't have been able to get close to him then." Itachi was giving his father a big grin, he was very happy at receiving his first "paycheck", even if it did seem a bit fishy.

"You have remarkable insight, Itachi. You are right. You lucked out since the bounty was never updated, otherwise it would have been a lot smaller."

"So who was he?"

"Tetsuro Ohba. A missing-nin from the village hidden in the Mist, Kirigakure. Apparently he had an affair with another woman and when his wife found out she took the kids and left. He killed his mistress then hunted down his wife. Killing her as well he then confined the two children, a boy and a girl, and starved and beat them until they also died. He was captured but escaped. Because Konoha has such bad relations with the Mist village we received no information on this guy's status. Since this all happened about fifteen years ago that made it impossible for us to track. However, once we got the head we sent a drawing to the five great countries. Even though we are at war with them now we do still trade a _little_ bit of information about missing ninja's. A hawk from Mist village came this morning with the guy's stats and the reward money. Apparently his wife had a powerful family and they forced through the payment even though Konoha are their enemies."

"Hmm. Yeah, that fits with what he was ranting about. But, if he had an affair, why would he care if his wife left? Don't people have affairs because they don't like their wives or husbands anymore?" Itachi was confused. Why had the giant cared about a woman he threw away?

"It's not that easy Itachi. Matters of the heart are neither sane nor predictable. However, a dangerous man is one who mistakes obsession for love. In cases like this the man does not love the woman, but considers her his property and if he can't have her, then no one can."

"So…because you haven't gone after Mik…I mean mother, does that mean you love her?" Itachi was rolling a thin piece of beef in a lettuce leaf and missed the look of pure shock on his father's face.

Fugaku's face drained of all color and he felt his chest tighten as his heart started pounding loudly. 'Do I love her?' He asked himself.

"Father! Are you okay?" Itachi's eyes opened wide as he finally noticed his father's reaction.

Fugaku ignored his son as conflicting emotions assaulted his brain. He hadn't given her much thought since she had left, but then again he was so busy that he didn't have time to think. Plus, Itachi was supposed to be more important to the clan. He had to put his son first. He had even waited four days before telling her the boy was okay. A sudden pang of guilt enveloped him. He should have sent a message right away. She must have been very upset, worrying needlessly over her eldest son. And with all the battles erupting around Grass country and the capital's proximity to them she couldn't travel safely with Sasuke so she couldn't return home.

Slowly Fugaku noticed his son's shocked face looking up at him. He quickly thought of an answer that didn't really answer the question, but, hopefully closed the subject. "She and I were put in an arranged marriage for the benefit of the clan, and so that you would be born. Itachi, you and I are in a unique situation. We exist for the clan, and only for the clan. Love does not exist for us, unless it comes unbidden. Do not spend your time looking for things that do not serve the greater good of our people. If that means you must make sacrifices in your personal life then make the sacrifice. It is better that you and I suffer than our cousins."

Itachi's face looked a little sad and Fugaku sighed. "I'm not sure you understand all this yet, Itachi. You are smarter and more mature than a normal six-year-old, but you still have only six years of experience in this world. In time, you should see this more clearly than you do now."

"Yes father. I will keep my eyes open and pay attention." Itachi flagged down a waitress and ordered more beef. He had skipped lunch, after all, and he was still very hungry.

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Later that night, after Itachi had equipped himself for combat and gone to bed ("cute" was the word Fugaku silently used to describe his son) the clan lord shut himself in his meeting room and placed a piece of paper and a pen in front of him. Three hours later he had written a short letter to Mikoto. It had been difficult. He had watched plenty of romantic type movies on TV and read novels that contained at least a little bit of love, but for some reason writing a letter to his wife asking her to return was much harder than the movies made it out to be.

Walking to the stables at 1am and waking the stable keeper he ordered the letter be given to the fastest Hawk available. The man quickly strapped it to a bird and Fugaku watched as it flew away. He stood and watched the sky for several minutes after the bird had disappeared from sight. All that trouble for such a short note.

"_Mikoto, I grow weary of restaurants and the house is quiet without Sasuke. Itachi forgets to eat when left on his own. Grass country has surrendered forcing Stone village to retreat so travel is safe again."_

He hoped the note wasn't too sappy.

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A few hours later Mikoto and Kisa were drinking tea in the kitchen when the Hawk perched itself on a branch outside the window. Mikoto opened the window and let it in. She removed the note, and gave the bird a small bowl of water.

Opening the message she read it quickly, then smiled. She had already decided to go back, Tobi's words echoed in her head. "Out of sight out of mind". How true that was. She was still bitter about having to wait four days to find out Itachi was safe, but as the wife of a clan leader she had to accept that her life was not the same as a regular woman's. She would remain in her son's life, despite Fugaku's protestations, by being visible whenever possible. And the next time Fugaku raised his hands against her, she would hit him back twice as hard.

"I'm leaving in a few hours, Kisa. Are you coming?" Mikoto felt better than she had in months. Nothing really had changed, she knew life didn't work that way, but she now understood that how she handled that life was what was important. She could be happy, or she could feel sorry for herself. When it came down to it, only one option would benefit her and her children. She would do whatever she could to be happy.

Kisa read the letter Mikoto passed to her and smiled. Looking at the calendar she realized that Shisui would be back today or tomorrow. However… "I'll stay and help your aunt pack, then I'll drive the wagon to Konoha. That way she isn't alone. I'll write Toshiro now and ask him to prepare a ground floor apartment for her."

"Thank-you for being so kind to her. I know she can be a little overbearing." Mikoto bowed to her friend.

"Ah, no problem. She's your aunt, but she is also my cousin. We all have to look out after each other." She returned the bow.

They both got to work on their letters, and sent the Hawk back to Konoha.

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Itachi was sitting on the floor of the living room deep in study when he felt someone behind him. Pulling a kunai he quickly turned around and dropped it in surprise.

"Shisui! You're back!"

"Oh! I _almost_ snuck up on you!" Shisui and Itachi were grinning widely at each other.

"I'm getting better then." Itachi sat back down on the floor.

"Eh, you were always good. So what are you reading all these books for?" Shisui tapped one of the piles with his bare foot, then sat down and picked one of the books up and opened it.

"I was kidnapped by a murderer and I didn't have any food or weapons and I didn't know which plants were edible so I'm studying so that doesn't happen again." Itachi looked over to see which book his cousin had grabbed.

"That was a long sentence. So what happened?"

"Madara heard something had happened, though I don't know how, and…" Something clicked in Itachi's brain. Kabuto probably mentioned it to his master, who told Madara, or even the mysterious "Leader".

"Was it Kabuto?" Shisui asked as he perused the index of his book.

"You know?"

"Yeah, I figured it out a long time ago. When Madara gave us the bracelets actually. They are identical to one I noticed he always wears. Except for the color."

"Oh." Itachi frowned.

"Don't do that, Itachi. I'm sure you figured it out too."

"I did, but not until Kabuto asked me where I had gotten my bracelet when we were in the schoolyard training."

"Anyway, tell me the rest. It sounds like you had an adventure without me!" Shisui smiled reassuringly at his cousin and Itachi's smile returned.

The two boys traded stories until the alarm clock went off, then after Itachi explained it was his father's way of reminding him to eat, the two boys collected Kabuto and made their way to a ramen stand.

"Yota is doing much better." Kabuto explained as he slurped his noodles. "He was extremely pissed off about his family's home. I talked father into letting him come live with us for a while, at least until he can be assigned an apartment."

"He's allowed to live on his own?" Shisui was a little surprised at this.

"Yeah, as an orphan who has exhibited an ability to be independent. He wants to take the genin test next year so he'll also have his own income."

"I take it he doesn't want to move back to his clan's compound?" Itachi figured he wouldn't either if the same thing happened to him.

"No. In fact, his concussion wasn't caused by his father, it was caused by Hiashi. He punished the boy for killing his father even though it was in self defense. He activated the seal on Yota's forehead, which messed with his brain, causing it to swell. Itachi, the man nearly killed Yota. If we hadn't gotten him to the hospital and if father hadn't performed brain surgery he would have died by morning. There is no excuse for that. Father said that it was an accidental side-effect and Hiashi felt bad about it, but still. It really bugs me." Kabuto was getting mad. There was so much about Yota's life that angered him.

Staring at the white haired boy, Shisui shook his head in disbelief. "So, did Hiashi kick him out of the clan? Why is he being allowed to live outside the compound?"

"Hiashi came to the hospital and told my father to find other living arrangements for the boy. He set up a small, very small trust fund for him. It wasn't enough to rent an apartment and eat at the same time. Father told me about it and I asked if Yota could live with us. We have two extra bedrooms. Father's house is big. He said 'yes' and Yota was relieved when we told him. Father said Hiashi wasn't being malicious, that he wanted Yota to live with someone and not be alone. But I guess I'm being suspicious."

"So when will he be out of the hospital?" Itachi smiled at the thought of Yota being happy.

"Next week. He's still very tired and sleeps a lot, also the psychologist wanted him kept under observation for a while. He said Yota might suffer from traumatic stress or something like that."

"Well, let me know when he does. I got a reward for killing that guy and I want to take you all out to lunch, including Shisui, for helping me."

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Mikoto carried Sasuke into the house. Taking her shoes off, she left her bags in the entryway and walked into the hall. She heard the quiet sound of paper and deduced that Itachi was reading. Walking silently down the hall she entered the living room as her eldest son looked up from his pile of books.

An expression of excitement passed over Itachi's face before he could hide it. He quickly looked back down to his book. "So you are back. Father said you would be arriving today. He said for me to tell you that he has meetings with the Hokage and council today and will stop by around 2pm to see if you were back yet."

"Itachi." Her soft voice called his name and it surprised him so much he looked up at her, frowning. "Itachi, I'm sorry I left you behind. I'm sorry I couldn't help you."

"Mother. Don't get emotional. Father did all he could. I was able to kill the kidnapper myself and escape. Father was very proud. You should be too." His matter of fact words made her sigh.

"You…killed him?"

"Yes."

"I…I can't believe it. But I am proud." She was, too, she had to admit to herself. This boy really was growing up to be a great ninja.

"Mother." Itachi thought of Yota, and the bravery he showed in defending himself from his father's attack. He also thought about his mother, not defending herself, letting her husband hit her until she was unconscious. He thought about how he had grabbed Sasuke and on impulse prepared to run from the house to protect them both. He thought back to the night when his father had broken his arm and he had to run away into the woods and hide.

"Yes Itachi?"

"If you ever let father hit you again, without defending yourself, I will never speak to you again. You are better at sparring than he is. I have seen the two of you train together. There was no excuse for what has happened in the past." Itachi was glad his father wasn't here to hear him say that. He was sure he would be picking himself up off the floor, bruises and all, if he was.

Mikoto bowed her head in shame and embarrassment. "So you figured it out. I didn't want you to see us fighting. Fugaku has a lot of pride and I was afraid of what he would do if I beat him during a real fight. I was afraid it would be seen as treason. But, don't worry Itachi." She raised her head and looked him straight in the eye, activating her sharingan. "I'm not afraid anymore and I will do whatever is necessary."

Sasuke, who had been quiet during the conversation, suddenly screeched. Mikoto and Itachi smiled.

"He hates being ignored. Why don't you take a break and spend a few minutes with him while I unpack?" Itachi stood up and took the baby in his arms, then carried him out into the garden. Sasuke grabbed hold of Itachi's shirt in both hands and held on tightly, smiling and laughing happily.

The older boy couldn't help but smile back at him. But something had changed. After learning about his fate and seeing his mother's tears he felt jealous of his younger brother. He was a boy who would bear none of the responsibilities of clan leadership. Sasuke could be anything he wanted to be. Itachi wanted to be a ninja, and he was doing just that, but he knew that his career would be limited as his leadership duties took over. He would be settling petty disputes over noisy dogs, a tool of the elder council, while Sasuke would be going off on missions. It wasn't fair.

The time he had now, until his father retired or died, would be the only time in his life he could be a full ninja. It was too short. Itachi sighed and rested his cheek on his brother's head. It didn't matter if Sasuke existed or not, his life would still be the same. He shouldn't blame the baby. But he still felt bitter about it.

Mikoto watched her two sons. Itachi was walking around the garden with his cheek resting on his brother's head. It was a pleasant sight, and even through Itachi was frowning, she couldn't help but smile at them. She was their mother, after all, and she wouldn't give this up for anything.

She felt grateful to Tobi for his advice. She also felt grateful that he had stopped kissing her when he did. It had felt so good, she had felt so safe in his arms. She needed someone to hold her like that. If he had not stopped, she was sure she wouldn't have either. She wasn't sure if she loved Fugaku, but she did want to be with him and she wanted him to want to be with her. Maybe that was love? In a clan where duty came first, how would she ever be able to tell? Smiling, she walked back into the house and started fixing lunch.

"If this is all there is, then I will make my own happiness and share it with my family."

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Yota had been out of the hospital for a week when Kabuto dragged him out into the woods. He had been practically adopted by Dr. Yakushi and it felt weird coming home to a house that didn't smell of unwashed clothes and illegal drugs and alcohol. In fact, the house smelled like clean clothes and fresh air. He realized the doctor was probably rich, but still, the house was exactly how he imagined normal people to live. How his parents would have lived if they hadn't been in a clan.

After walking for an hour Kabuto and Yota felt a presence ahead of them.

"Yota. Ahead of us is Sasori." Kabuto's voice was strained and a little fearful. "Whatever you do, give him the utmost respect. Do not question him too much. He is merciless."

Yota nodded his head and gulped as his mouth went dry. He had finally realized that his cooperation was not needed for this, but he wanted to cooperate, he wanted to be a spy. He wanted revenge for the life his parents had led.

As they continued to walk down the road a figure appeared in front of them. It looked like a large rectangular lump with a head. And the head was scowling.

"Right on time Kabuto. And this is young Yota?" The deep gravelly voice sent chills through Yota as he quickly kneeled down in respect. Kabuto had also kneeled down.

"Yes master Sasori." Kabuto spoke in a loud clear voice.

"Yota Hyuuga!"

"Yes master Sasori?" Yota's voice shook as he spoke and he berated himself for it.

"Open this box." A long mechanical arm suddenly appeared from Sasori's body and deposited a small box in front of the boy. Opening it Yota found a bracelet exactly like Kabuto's.

"Put it on." Sasori instructed.

Yota opened the clasp and slipped it on his wrist.

Sasori chuckled malevolently. "You will follow my orders to the letter. When I tell you to report at a certain time, you will not be late. I do not put up with fools."

"Yes master. I will follow your orders exactly." Yota's voice finally came back to him and he looked up to face Sasori. The determination Sasori saw in the boy's face was different from the tears he had seen when Kabuto was recruited. Kabuto had fought him and was nearly killed for it. But Yota…

"Why do you wish to betray you village, boy?"

"My parents are dead and my house was burned down because the Hyuuga did not accept my parents or me. I wish revenge."

"You killed your father. Your mother killed herself in grief. Do you feel no responsibility for this?"

"None at all." Yota confessed. "If we were not forced to live in the clan he would not have become an addict or an alcoholic and he would not have attacked me. I was forced to defend myself. He was manipulated. All three of us were manipulated. It's not our fault."

Sasori looked at the boy kneeling in front of him. The children of ninja suffered greatly. He knew this, he had been a victim of it himself having been raised by his grandmother after Konoha's "White Fang" had killed his own parents. He was instructed in the mechanics of ninja puppetry and grew to become a powerful ninja with no emotions. His grandmother had been an excellent instructor. Whether the old woman accepted it or not, she was the one who made him what he was now.

"So be it, boy. Kabuto, instruct Yota in the use of the bracelets and in the finer points of being a spy."

"Yes master." Kabuto smiled and glanced at the older boy next to him.

"Yota, my ninjutsu, my _art_, is puppetry. I create my puppets by hollowing out living people and then inserting puppet mechanisms into their corpses. What you see before you is one of my corpse puppets. Betrayal or failure will do nothing more than give me another puppet to play with. A Hyuuga puppet would compliment my collection well."

"So be it then, master. If I fail, then I gain satisfaction from knowing that my corpse may still be of some use to you. Especially if it is used against Konoha." Yota's words cut into Kabuto like a knife, and Sasori like a warm spring breeze.

"Ha ha ha! You are a rash one, aren't you? Don't get cocky. You still have some use to me while you are alive." Sasori then turned around and left the two boys alone in the woods.

Standing up Kabuto scowled. "I think master Sasori likes you, but as he said, don't get too much ahead of yourself. Missions can take months to accomplish because you have to use stealth."

"Of course. I will learn from you and do my best." Yota looked down at the bracelet. "So what does this have to do with Itachi and Shisui?"

Kabuto was caught off guard by the question. "Ah. Umm. If either of them tells us to do something we have to do it. I think their master is higher up than ours. Neither one of them is the type to abuse that though, so don't feel put out."

"Oh, I don't. I was just wondering. I know both of them are smarter than me and Itachi is definitely a Taijutsu genius."

"Well, I'll tell you how to use the bracelet while we walk back to town. Itachi wanted to take all of us out for lunch and we don't want to be late for a free meal, now, do we?" Kabuto laughed as Yota's stomach growled in agreement.

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"So what do you think?" Sasori spoke to a dark figure standing next to him.

"He shows promise, but that seal on his forehead would prevent him from being completely useful. He is a good choice as a subordinate, though." Madara had been standing in the woods watching the meeting and Sasori joined him after the boys left.

"Yes. Unfortunate. Is there a way to remove it?"

"Orochimaru had tried but was unsuccessful. The Uchiha bloodline is much more powerful than the Hyuuga so he decided he didn't want a Hyuuga and stopped his research."

"Hmm. Well, he should work well with Kabuto, perhaps even keep the younger boy from getting sidetracked." Sasori was starting to think of all the things he could be doing instead of gossiping and was getting impatient.

"Why did you pick Kabuto anyway? He's good as a spy, but he seems hard to control." Madara sensed Sasori's impatience but was still curious about some things and didn't want him to leave yet.

"He is a genius. He also has a very powerful Kekkei Genkai that allows him to rebuild damaged cells. Perhaps I even felt a little sorry for him and gave him a second chance at life. Although he was so severely traumatized that I had to erase his memories before I could use him."

Frowning Madara looked at the puppet standing next to him. "Really? What happened?"

"You're a ninja, use your imagination. Life sucks for the children. If you haven't figured that out, then don't ask." Sasori was angered by what he saw as a series of extremely stupid questions. "I will take my leave now."

Once Sasori had left Madara sat down on a log. "I have figured that out, Sasori. Why else do you think I recruited you?"

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**Next chapter Itachi turns seven and takes the genin exam. Will he pass? XD**

**I tried to put more emotion into the characters. Did I succeed? Leave a review and let me know. Or leave a review about anything. xD**

**Put this story in your alerts and you will get an e-mail when I update (on Fridays)**


	20. Chapter 20 Genin

**Hi – it's me again. Thank-you for the reviews and favs and alerts and for just reading. **

**Last week – Itachi studied up on outdoor survival and Mikoto returned home.**

**Happy Easter! I love Easter candy.**

**Disclaimer – Naruto is owned by Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 20 - Genin**

The late morning sun was warm for July. The temperature was already in the mid eighties and it was expected to be in the nineties by afternoon. A small breeze blew up the river that wound through the middle of the Konoha shopping district. Small waves reflected the bright sun, causing bright reflections that hurt the young boy's eyes.

Itachi was exhausted, and wanted nothing more than to sleep. He was standing in the center of a small bridge that crossed the river staring into the bright water. He was supposed to go home, but he didn't want to. Sighing, he sat down and laid his head on the lower railing.

Thirty minutes earlier he had passed the Genin exam and he now wore a shiny brand-new Konoha leaf forehead protector. It was what he always wanted, but it also saddened him. His father and the council of elders had made such a big deal over what would happen to him if he failed that he was still upset with them. Maybe he would just sit here for a few hours and let them worry. Then go home.

Closing his eyes the boy's hands dropped to his sides, the sounds of cicada bugs, flies, and gently lapping waves relaxed his mind as he drifted off to sleep.

_The dark evening covered the bodies of two trespassers. They walked alongside the river, the smaller of them with his head down walking behind the taller one who looked straight ahead. It was late, around midnight, or maybe later._

"_Itachi, the water is deep enough here."_

"_We can fight and no one will suspect."_

"_Then you can…" _

_A feeling of time having passed and the area next to the river was wet. Only one person was standing._

"_My body…."_

_A sudden feeling of loss and loneliness, of power and strength, of fear and terror._

Itachi cried out and jumped to his feet, breathing heavily. The dream, _nightmare_, was so real he could still hear the voice echoing in his head. It was a deep voice, and the person speaking had been a little taller than Yota, but it was not someone he recognized. It had been late evening in his dream and the person was hidden by shadows.

Taking one last deep breath he looked up at the sun. He had only been asleep for a few minutes. Now what? He didn't want to go home, he couldn't sleep, and he was beginning to feel cranky.

Looking down at the water he shuddered. The dream was a new one. Probably brought on by being over-tired and falling asleep by a river. Itachi remembered fairy tales about trees that would lull travelers to sleep by rivers then kill them. But he was too old to believe in fairy tales.

"_Itachi!" _Madara's voice boomed in the boy's head.

Itachi jumped, then opened his eyes wide in shock. "I forgot to call you! I can't believe it! I'm so sorry!"

"_You forgot? That's not like you. Are you ill?"_ Madara sounded amused. He was. The boy held himself to such high standards that is was amusing when he failed.

"I…um…I fell asleep by the river. I'm not ill. Please accept my apologies."Itachi truly felt awful about missing an appointment. He hated telling people he would do something, then not do it.

"_It's okay, kid. However, you will become ill if you don't get enough sleep. So, are you a Genin now?"_

"Yes."

Madara chuckled. _"Good. If you can stay awake tomorrow, let me know who is on your team, their jutsu's and skill levels."_

"Yes. Yota will be on my team, and you already know about him. Yuri is a girl Yota's age, but I don't know anything about her. Also I don't know yet who our sensei will be."

"_Hmm. How do you know your team already?"_

"Only us three took the exam."

Madara was slightly dumbstruck by this news. It could only mean that this team of Genin was already specially chosen by the Hokage for some reason. Why would he do that? Possibly because of the war with Cloud and Stone. Usually Genin were only used for simple information gathering missions. Nothing that could endanger their lives. But this turn of events made it sound like these three kids were going to be treated as Chuunin and given more advanced missions.

"_Itachi, tell me about the tests they gave you and the others."_ He wanted the boy to learn fast, but he didn't want his prize to be killed on a mission that was too advanced for him. He was going to be an extremely powerful ninja someday, but right now he was a seven-year-old prodigy who, despite his maturity was still a child.

"Umm. Yuri was asked to identify the number of chakra sources at various ranges including other rooms in the school. Yota had to use his Byakugan to read the blackboard in another room, and read something behind him. I had to take a memory test where I had to identify items on cards after seeing them for a second, and recite a scroll consisting of 3000 words after reading it once. We all had to do a transportation jutsu, mask our chakra at different levels, dispel a Genjutsu and do a shadow clone jutsu."Itachi was getting curious. Why was Madara so interested in a simple Genin exam?

The older man was completely dumbstruck now. That was not even close to being a regular Genin exam. The three children had been singled out for something. Was Fugaku aware of this? Was he behind it?

"_How has your father been acting lately? Has his behavior been different from usual?"_

"I…uh…maybe not different, but he and the elder's council have been on my case for the last two weeks threatening me with severe punishment if I failed. He even got mad when I took a break to help celebrate Sasuke's second birthday yesterday."

'Second birthday?' Madara's thoughts sidetracked. 'I guess he was nearly a year old when I saw him and Mikoto last April, or was it May? June?'

"_Itachi, I'm going to spell it out for you, with no innuendo. You, Yota and Yuri have been specially chosen and placed on a team together. The exam today was a setup, and you were obviously given tests they already knew you would pass. Be careful. Yota is still useful to Sasori, and this Yuri, if she is paired with you two, must have some amazing skills or Kekkei Genkai of her own. Your sensai is likely to be a highly skilled jounin as well. Contact me before 6pm with any news you get, or I will contact you after 6pm if I don't hear from you. Tomorrow you will likely have some kind of teamwork exercise so keep your eyes open."_

"Is this bad? I want to learn more, and if they think that highly of me then surely I will learn a lot." Itachi felt like Madara was worrying for nothing.

"_I am merely worried that the Hokage is taking desperate measures in a war that has lasted longer than you have been alive. He is an old man and has made some rather severe lapses in judgment lately. I do not like the thought that you or Shisui could turn into one of those 'lapses'."_

"I will contact you tomorrow, and I will keep my eyes open. Thank-you, Madara." Madara cut the contact as soon as Itachi stopped speaking.

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Four hours later Itachi walked into his father's house and made his way to the living room. His father was reading a book and his mother was watching a Samurai movie on TV. Sasuke was sitting on the floor playing with some brightly colored blocks.

"Tachi! Tach!" The toddler stood up and ran to his brother. Itachi picked him up and sat down on the couch next to his mother. Sasuke noticed the forehead protector and hit it with his hand, then laughed loudly.

"It appears you have passed the exam. Were there many students?" Fugaku closed his book and gave his son a lop-sided grin.

Itachi was not amused. He had thought long and hard about what Madara had told him, and he decided he did not like being used. By anyone. But especially by his father and the elders. Unfortunately he also realized that at this point in time there was nothing he could do about it. He knew what they were up to. He had heard his father and Kentaro discussing such things years ago in the temple. They had plans for him as he grew older, and they would make sure he followed their plans. No matter what.

Madara had also told him, though, that he could use their plans as a way to gain experience and grow in power. It was this thought that pushed Itachi to return home. He needed them. He wished he could be with Madara, but he couldn't, so Fugaku would have to do for now.

"Father, there were only three of us at the test. And you know it. Quit playing me for a fool." Itachi stared his father in the eye, waiting for his father to hit him for his insolence. But instead his father's grin widened.

"So the kid's getting a big mouth. Well, Itachi, you should watch what you say. The Hokage picked your team for a particular mission. One the three of you and your sensai should be able to execute without too much trouble."

"And he is using inexperienced Genin because?"

"He's a fool."

Itachi's eyes blinked once. He did not expect to hear those words from his father.

"Itachi, if you are smart enough to figure things out this far, then you should be smart enough to keep on your toes when the mission goes wrong. And it will go wrong. You three kids watch out for each other. The Hokage has made a couple extremely bad decisions lately and if this decision turns into his third I will personally rip him into a million pieces."

Itachi nodded, then looked down at the floor and sighed. Sasuke had leaned forward and was resting on his chest with his eyes closed. Itachi tightened his grip and rested his cheek on his brother's head. So his father wasn't part of what the Hokage was planning. But…

"Why were you guys making such a big deal about me passing then? There was no way I could fail."

"Because you are my heir and I will not accept failure from you. This mission will succeed because _you_ are on it. The whole village will be affected if it fails. They will blame the Hokage, but they will also blame you, and me. Uchiha cannot afford any more negative words; we still haven't recovered from the ill-will caused by Madara's invasion.

"Also, the council and I have decided on a role for both you and Shisui. When he returns it will be explained to you both."

"Yes father. I will not fail. I will never fail. When is Shisui coming back?" Missions were usually secret but sometimes his father heard things through the grapevine.

"He should have been back yesterday. Another team has been sent out to locate them. They were only supposed to retrieve scrolls from hidden, unmanned locations, but if they are late they obviously ran into trouble." Fugaku frowned.

"His father is on the team, then? I saw him run by me this morning." Itachi returned his father's frown. The memory of his dream, then the bad news about Shisui couldn't be some sort of bad omen, could it?

"Yes, him and two other Uchiha left this morning. The last contact point was only fifty miles away, so hopefully we will get news tomorrow. Until then, why don't we go out to eat and celebrate your new status as a ninja? There will be a clan-wide celebration when you get back from your first mission, since some people from the capital will want to come as well." Fugaku stood up and Mikoto turned off the TV.

"Where do you want to go Itachi?" Mikoto smiled warmly as she lifted the sleeping toddler off of his older brother. She loved the way the two boys got along so well.

"I guess, barbecue beef?" Itachi returned his mother's smile. He really just wanted to take a nap, for about fifty hours, but his stomach was clenching in hunger and he was sure as soon as he smelled the food it would start growling.

Itachi felt better after talking to his father, but he also noticed that in some ways, his father was just as much of a pawn as he was. The Hokage gave him an order, even though it would endanger his son, and he had no choice but to follow it.

And Shisui. What if he didn't come back? What if…. "What am I thinking?" Itachi spoke out loud.

"Huh?" Mikoto looked at him as they were all walking down the hall towards the front door.

"I…uhh…need to use the bathroom for a second. I'll be right out!" Itachi ran down the hall and into the bathroom. Concentrating on his bracelet he called Shisui.

"_I'm here."_ Shisui answered, but his voice sounded week.

"Your father is coming to your last known contact point. Are you near that spot?" Itachi spoke as quietly as he could, not wanting his parents to hear.

"_Yes. We were attacked. We are okay, but injured. Sensai is trying to keep us…healed enough…"_ Itachi thought Shisui had meant to say "alive".

"He left this morning with two other Uchiha's. Hold on, okay?"

"_They should be here soon, then. I used too much chakra, I can't move. My head hurts."_

"I'll see you when you get back." Itachi cut the communication. Shisui was badly injured. He wished he was with him so he could help. But the others should be there soon, maybe even any minute now. Taking a deep breath, Itachi flushed the toilet for good measure and walked with his parents and brother to eat dinner. But it felt fake, knowing that his best friend was suffering fifty miles away.

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The next morning Itachi, Yota and Yuri met up at training ground three, as they were told. There was another girl there, a teenager, sitting with her back up against a pole. They looked at her curiously, wondering why she was there. The girl looked to be about medium height, skinny, with long green hair that had yellow streaks in it, and blue eyes.

The teenager slowly stood up and walked over to the three kids. "Hey. How are you." The question came out as a bored statement that she didn't expect an answer to. No one answered her.

"My name is Yurina, I'm your sensai. Yes, I am seventeen years old, yes I am the youngest sensai in the history of Konoha, no it does not impress me. Any other questions?"

"What is our mission?" Itachi got right to the point. The other two nodded their heads. Apparently they had thought the whole "test" thing through and come up with the same conclusions Itachi had.

"Hmm. Good. You are all smart. I'm glad. But, before we start our mission, you three will do a teamwork exercise. It should be fun. I thought it up myself." Her bored tone suddenly turned excited. "I have planted a scroll in a cabin, the location of which is noted in this map." She handed them a map to look at. "You will make your way to the cabin, read the contents of the scroll, then return here and transcribe the scroll exactly as read onto this blank scroll. The cabin is guarded and the path to the cabin will be manned with 'enemies'. It is 8am now. You have until 2pm to finish. Now go!" She grabbed the map back from them and disappeared.

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"Yuri, what is your specialty?" Itachi got right to the point. The three children were hidden in the brush a mile away from the training grounds. Not knowing if there would be "enemies" nearby they thought it best to get away and hide before decided on a plan of attack.

"I can sense chakra from long distances, and I can send my chakra through roots and into plants, then form a clone to spy on enemies. I can also send my chakra through roots and wrap them around people." She pointed down at Yota's feet.

"Hey!" Yota pulled at his foot, which was currently wrapped tightly with a tree root. "That's actually really cool. I didn't even feel it."

"I suppressed the chakra in the root even as I extended it to wrap around your ankle. Only my uncles would be able to sense it."

Yurina frowned and looked at the ground. "But my shuriken jutsu and Taijutsu are really bad. Uncle wouldn't teach them to me and said practicing was a waste of time because he wanted me to master our families Kekkei Genkai first."

"Was it very hard?" Itachi thought the theory was simple enough, but he knew chakra control was difficult to learn.

"At first, yeah. But now it's second nature. What about you guys? I know about the Byakugan, but what else can you guys do?"

"Well, Itachi and myself are amazing at Taijutsu and Shuriken, but Itachi has a photographic memory and I have been learning some advanced Hyuuga fighting techniques from…um…a cousin." Yota smiled broadly, obviously pleased with himself.

"Advanced? What does that mean?" Yuri only knew about the eye jutsu.

"64 palms technique of the gentle fist attack. Only the main branch is supposed to know it, but my cousin is feeling a little…disgruntled. He came to me last fall and said he would teach me himself. His three-year-old son comes with us and tries to copy our moves. Anyway, it's probably overkill for this exercise. I'd rather use it away from Konoha."

Itachi's eyes widened. "So you actually mastered it?"

"Yeah! Finally, a couple weeks ago."

Itachi was impressed and couldn't wait to see it, but right now they had to plan an infiltration. "Hmm. So, anyway, I think what we should do is get closer to the cabin. You two will determine where the enemy is. I will enter the cabin and memorize the scroll while you guys hold off any attacks. Then we will return to the training grounds and copy the scroll. We'll come up with an idea of how to enter the cabin once we get there and see what we are up against."

"Yes Captain!" Yota saluted him and Yuri laughed when Itachi gave him a dirty look.

The three children took off in the direction of the cabin, keeping to the underbrush. Yuri was in the lead checking for chakra signatures, Yota in the back with his Byakugan activated and Itachi was in the middle ready to attack if and when they ran into someone.

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Yurina stepped out from behind a tree. "What excellent teamwork. No quibbling or power struggles. They learned each other's strengths, formulated a plan, then went to work. Lord Hokage, they are perfect."

"Of course." The Hokage stepped out from behind large bush and smiled at her. "I chose them on the best of recommendations from the Academy and from my own personal observations. All three are future ANBU material, might as well start their training now."

"I look forward to seeing how good Itachi's memory is. He is the key to this operation. And he is able to defend himself. The last few boys were very weak. Keeping them safe was more trouble than it was worth."

"Yurina, you can be cold sometimes."

"_You_ are the one who assigned those boys to my team without the proper training. _You_ are the one who is cold."

The Hokage sighed, closing his eyes. "You are right. Unfortunately, when we do not have a hammer, sometime we must use a rock instead. Hopefully now, you have your hammer."

Yurina smirked. "We'll find out soon enough."

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Yuri was sitting with her legs folded underneath her. Her hands were in front of her face clasped together with the index and middle finger of her right hand pointing straight up. She was deep in concentration. Sending her chakra through various roots she had infiltrated the small cabin a couple hundred feet from where the young ninjas were hiding.

Yota was using his Byakugan to keep an eye on the area, and to watch Yuri's back since she was concentrating so hard on the cabin he suspected she might be a little vulnerable right now.

Itachi was feeling a little useless. He really wished he had his sharingan. Unless they were attacked he felt the only thing he could was read a scroll and then transcribe it. Boring. Very boring.

The two ninjas guarding the cabin were sitting on the ground, looking for the world like they weren't paying attention to anything. However, Itachi was sure they were very alert. They might even already know they were being watched. If they did, then they could be putting on a show of looking casual. Which meant…

"Yota! Yuri! There has to be at least one if not more ninjas around here. I think they know we're here."

"I'll look closer." Yota scrunched his face in concentration.

"I found the scroll. The cabin has one window on the other side of the building. It is small, but Itachi can fit through, if we can't secure the door. The scroll is sitting on the table, but there is a paper seal placed over it. It is securing it to the table so it needs to be removed before you can touch the scroll. There are two other seals – one on the wall by the window and the second on the floor near the door. They have the same symbol on them. I guess the three seals are connected somehow." Yuri drew back her chakra, careful to keep it masked and stood up.

Itachi thought about what Yuri had just said. "We have to capture one of the guards and ask him what the seals are for. But first, we have to find the missing guard."

"Why can't Yota do his 64 palms thing?" Yuri sat back down on the ground and stretched her legs out in front of her.

Yota frowned. "We don't know how many guards there are. If I take out those two and twenty more come running out of the woods I've just used up a ton of chakra and you guys will have to do most of the fighting. If I am going to use that technique then we have to get as many of them near me as possible so I can take them all out at once."

"Good point." Itachi had also been ready to suggest Yota's new technique, but apparently it was a "last resort" type of thing. Well, he just learned it, so maybe when he got more experienced it will be different.

The Genin sat quietly for a few minutes thinking. They needed a way to draw out the hidden guard or guards. All of them.

"We will each send a shadow clone of ourselves to the window. They will climb into the cabin. That should draw out the hidden guards. Let's make our way over there now." Itachi spoke quietly as he looked up at the sky. It was nearly 10am.

Yota and Yuri watched the area as they made their way to the other side of the cabin. The three children had to skirt around it using the woods for cover so it took about fifteen minutes.

Without exposing their chakra each of the Genin created a perfect shadow clone of themselves. Each clone was then imbued with a very small chakra signature. Enough to make it look as though they weren't masking their chakra correctly. The clones made their way covertly to the small window. The Itachi clone climbed inside and the other two stood looking inside the building.

"Itachi! One person approaching from nine o-clock. The other two are approaching the door."

"There don't seem to be any other guards." Yuri had her eyes closed in concentration as she scanned the area.

"Okay! My clone has just locked the door. Yuri! Can you grab the three guards with your roots?" Itachi slowly stood up.

"Yes." She made a new series of hand signs and the three guards suddenly found themselves tangled in tree roots. Sighing she leaned back against a tree.

"Are you okay?" Yota knelt down next to her.

"Yeah, but capturing three people at the same time in two different places is not something I can do too many times in a row. I'll need to rest a little before we head back."

"No problem." Itachi smiled at her. "I can handle it from here. I'll just get that guy to tell me what the seals are for then read the scroll. You stay here, and Yota and I will be back in a few minutes."

Itachi approached the struggling jounin and stopped a couple feet away from him. The man looked down at the seven-year-old boy and blinked a couple times. "You! What is this jutsu!"

"It's a secret. Now tell me what the seal covering the scroll is for."

"It's a secret." The man echoed Itachi's higher pitched child's voice and laughed at him.

Itachi's face went blank as all emotion drained away from it. Yota, who had been standing near him stepped back, a sudden surge of fear welling up. The jounin felt Yota's chakra spike and stopped laughing.

"You better answer him. Itachi isn't exactly like other ninja when it comes to backing off. If he gets mad, you're dead." Yota voice was serious. "He won't care that this is supposed to be an exercise and you are actually allies."

The jounin frowned as he looked at the small boy a little more seriously than he had a minute ago. So this was the Uchiha heir. Rumors were circulating about him, certainly, but they were the type of stories you attributed to an older ninja. Not this puny little runt standing before him.

"I don't feel like talking." The jounin answered.

Itachi started to emit a very ominous chakra. It was so full of killing intent that Yota backed off several feet. The jounin was not phased. You don't rise up through the ranks without having a backbone.

Slowly, the boy drew out a small, child-sized Katana. The blade caught the sun and reflected bright light into the man's eyes. Itachi looked the man over, then pushed the sword into his thigh, missing the arteries, but surely causing a lot of pain. Pulling it out, slowly, the man cringed and clenched his jaw tightly to stop from crying out.

Yota spoke, his voice a little stronger than before. "Are you ready to talk now?"

"Never!"

Itachi pushed his sword into the other leg, in the same spot.

"What about now?" Yota crouched down, trying to look bored. He decided to play the part of the "bored comrade who had seen his partner do this a hundred times".

"Hey, Itachi!" Yuri yelled from the woods. "He's not screaming loud enough! You know how much I _love_ to hear them scream! Shall I tighten the roots a little?" The roots started to tighten slightly and the man started to struggle again.

"You heard the little girl, old man, she wants to hear you scream." Yota smirked and threw a small rock at the man's face.

Itachi raised his sword again, aiming for an arm. The jounin suddenly decided to talk. "You kids are out of your minds! This was supposed to be an exercise. What the hell is wrong with you!"

"I don't hear any screaming!" Yuri yelled in a sing-song voice.

"I don't either." Yota answered. "Itachi? Let's not keep the lady waiting."

"Okay! Okay! Stop! I'll tell you what the seal is!" Itachi held the sword up in mid-air. He decided to wait for Yota to tell him to back down, to make the guy sweat a little more.

"I said I would tell you! Put the sword away!" The man's voice pitched a little higher than he intended.

"Then talk. If we like what you say, _maybe_ we'll back off." Yota was definitely starting to enjoy himself.

"Okay. There are three seals in the room. They have to be pulled away from the surface they are adhered to simultaneously or the seal on the scroll will catch fire and burn it." The man was starting to have trouble breathing and his pants were completely soaked in blood.

"Okay Itachi, I think we can believe him. Yuri! You'll have to help us." Yota stood up and walked around the building to the door. Itachi's clone opened it then vanished, along with the other two clones that were still standing by the window.

As they pulled off the seals the inside of the cabin was engulfed in smoke, but it dissipated quickly. Itachi opened the scroll and started reading. Ten minutes later he had it memorized and placed it back on the table. That was a lot of trouble for a short document. It was only about 3000 words. Well, it was an exercise after all.

"We need to get back now. However, there will probably be more ninja that will try to attack us on our way back." Itachi spoke quietly as he looked around the cabin. It was very plain. The only thing in it had been the scroll and table it sat on.

"What should we do with _him_?" Yota nodded in the direction of the wounded ninja.

Yuri smiled. "Leave him. His comrades are also caught in the vines, so one or two of the other ninja that would have come after us will have to look after him instead.

Itachi gave a short laugh. "I hadn't thought of that. It's possible we have a clear road ahead of us. Well, let's not get too cocky about it. Let's go!"

As they ran back into the woods Yota saw two ninja run up to the injured man and smirked. "That's two down."

Well, unfortunately there was no more resistance as the Genin made their way back to the training ground. The children had been half-hoping for a fight, or a trap or something interesting. Itachi opened the blank scroll then sat down on the ground and started writing. Twenty minutes later he stopped and shook his hand, trying to remove the cramps that were forming.

"Here, you recite the scroll and I'll write for a while." Yuri took the scroll from the younger boy.

"Thanks. I'm not used to writing. I just remember stuff so I never take notes at school." Itachi smiled at his teammate as he started reciting the rest of the scroll. Yota kept watch in case they were attacked during the transcribing.

It was 1pm and they were finished. Now all they had to do was wait for Sensei Yurina to return. They all agreed that they had a great workout and that if the missions were all like that it would be a lot of fun.

Yurina finally showed up at 2pm and brought them each a box lunch. As they sat and ate she read through the scroll, verifying its accuracy.

"Very good, Itachi, your memory is as excellent as I was told. You all did an excellent job. You are to be commended. The way you took out that jerk was priceless. I laughed so hard after you left!"

"Ah, well, thank-you." Yota gave his sensai a big smile. "We had a lot of fun."

"I noticed! Well, we have a real mission. The purpose of our team is to infiltrate enemy strongholds and steal important documents. Sometimes we steel the document, sometimes we memorize them and transcribe them later, like in your exercise today. We have a backlog because we have been having trouble finding a person with a good memory who can also fight. However, you three worked great as a team so I can tell we will get through that backlog quickly."

"So when do we leave?" Itachi wanted to leave right away. He wanted to get away from Konoha for one thing, and he wanted to use his ninja skills again. And, torturing that man had been fun. The fear in his eyes, the way Yota and Yuri taunted him. It was perfect.

"The day after tomorrow, meet me at the front gate at 7am. Our missions are top secret, so there will be no discussion of how long they will take or where we are going until we meet. Itachi, your parents, and Yuri, your uncle, have been told to expect you back when you return. They understand the nature of these missions. However, the first one will be easy. Kind of a warm-up."

"We can hardly wait." To say Yota, Itachi and Yuri were happy would be an understatement.

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Itachi made his way to the hospital after Sensai Yurina had dismissed them. He had contacted Madara and told him about his test and his teammates. It was then that he realized he didn't know anything about Yurina. But Madara said it didn't matter. He was, however, quite interested in Yuri's skills. Quite enigmatically he said that her Kekkei Genkai reminded him of someone. He then told Itachi to go to the hospital because Shisui had a surprise for him.

What kind of a surprise could a bedridden boy who had just come back from a failed mission have? Maybe an interesting or morbidly disfiguring scar? He could see Shisui thinking that was cool. But Itachi really didn't care one way or the other.

After obtaining his cousins room number from the front desk he climbed the stairs to the third floor. Shisui was in a private room laying on his back with a couple machines hooked up to him. Kisa and Mikoto were sitting next to him and Sasuke was laying on the other bed napping.

"Itachi! You're finally here!" Shisui lifted his head a couple inches but Kisa gently pushed it back down.

"The doctor said not to move around, dear." Her voice was softer than usual, but the smile she gave was real.

"So what happened?" Itachi sat in an empty chair.

"We were ambushed. Cloud knew that I was on the team. Apparently they have been collecting Kekkei Genkai and figured that since I was a kid I would be easy pickings. So they attacked and we fought them off, killing them all, but we all ended up injured and we couldn't walk back. Sensai had a broken arm and a hairline fracture on his leg so he couldn't walk far. The other two had stab wounds. I got hit in the head and stabbed in the stomach. My kidney was injured, but the doctor healed it."

"Wow. All that to kidnap you? Just to get your eyes? Are the others mad at you, then?" Itachi was worried about what his new teammates would do if they had to fight for their lives because of him.

"I thought they would be, but they said that my inheritance belongs to Konoha and must be defended. Besides, they are my friends. They would defend me anyway. And me them."

Itachi smiled. "Yes. Of course."

"But Itachi, something good did happen when they attacked." Shisui gave his cousin a big smile and Itachi looked at him curiously. "I have the Sharingan now!"

Itachi stood up and looked down at his cousin's face.

_And a memory from the dream he'd had on the bridge the day before resurfaced but with an additional detail. Two red eyes stared up at him from the depths of the turbulent waters. Then everything went black._

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**Please review! **

**Okay – next week Itachi goes on his first mission with his team, and he learns what job Fugaku has decided to assign Itachi and Shisui.**


	21. Chapter 21 First Konoha Mission

**Last week Itachi became a Genin in a test rigged by the Hokage. He wanted to set up a team to steal secret documents from enemy shinobi. Itachi got to have some fun torturing an "enemy" ninja, and he also got a shock when he looked at Shisui's new Sharingan.**

**Thanks for the reviews and fav's everyone! **

**Disclaimer – Kishimoto owns everything.**

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**Chapter 21 – The First Konoha Mission**

"…lot of nightmares lately. He only slept for about three hours the night before."

"Any idea what could be causing his insomnia and the nightmares?"

"I can think of a few little things, but he was like this when he was Sasuke's age as well and things were a lot different then."

Itachi listened to the voices, not really registering who was speaking or where he was. The room was partially lit with a lamp and the shadows on the ceiling seemed to move as if they were the ones doing the talking and not people.

A man's face moved into view, covering the shadows on the ceiling. "It looks like you're finally awake. You gave everyone quite a scare when you collapsed, young man." A hand started to caress his hair and he moved his eyes to view a woman's face.

"Something's wrong. Look at him, it's like he doesn't recognize us." The woman's voice rose a little. Perhaps it was panic?

"Hmm. He's obviously disoriented. I spoke to his sensei and he received no injury during his training yesterday. Not even a scratch. In fact, if I didn't know any better, I would say he is actually acting like he has received a huge shock and his brain has shut down partially until it can deal with it. He'll be fine, though. He does understand what we are saying, but isn't able to react to it. Let's give him a few minutes to adjust."

Ten minutes later Itachi blinked his eyes a few times and lifted his hands and folded them over his chest. "Where am I?" His voice was horse.

"Oh, Itachi! You are in Shisui's hospital room. Are you okay? You've been asleep for almost fourteen hours. Is there anything you would like?" he finally recognized the voice as his mother.

"Bathroom." This speaking thing was troublesome.

"Ah! Of course. Let me help you up."

When Itachi had returned he wanted to sit in a chair instead of the bed. He looked over and saw that his cousin was asleep. Glancing at the clock he saw it was 5am.

"Why are you here so early?" Itachi thought it odd that a doctor would visit him so early in the morning.

"I've been in and out to see you already a couple times already. My shift doesn't end for another three hours anyway." Dr. Yakushi sat down in another chair in front of the young boy. "Tell me what happened just before you collapsed. Your mother said you had a look of terror on face."

Itachi thought back but all he could see was a set of red eyes. Still, it had terrified him. It was that dream of the river.

The door opened and Itachi turned his head to see his father walk into the room. The clan leader's face held no expression. "It's okay, Itachi, you may speak to him."

Itachi closed his eyes and nodded once. "I had this dream." He paused.

"Itachi, it's okay. Go ahead and talk." Fugaku frowned a little. He was concerned when he heard his son had fainted after seeing his cousin's new Sharingan. It was rather bizarre and at first he had thought it was some kind of jealousy since the two boys were almost like brothers, but fainting went a little too far for that.

"It was night, I got the feeling it was around midnight. Two people, one tall and one short walked to a concealed spot by the river. One spoke and said they could fight there and they wouldn't be seen. Then some time passed and the area was all wet and I saw the short person looking into river at two red eyes. He then said something about his body and then I woke up terrified. I didn't recognize their voices. I've never heard them before even though one of them called the other 'Itachi', it wasn't me. But…there was nothing in the dream that seemed scary. No monsters or blood or…I don't know. Why did it scare me?" Itachi was feeling a little desperate.

Dr. Yakushi looked up at Fugaku with a serious expression on his face. He then stood up and motioned for him to follow him into the hall.

"Have you ever spoken to him about the Mangekyo Sharingan? I realize the child is your heir, but it is a forbidden jutsu." The doctor looked the elder Uchiha in the eye, as if challenging him.

"Never. He knows it exists, but he does not know how to obtain it. It is possible he has gained the information second hand or even accidentally." Fugaku was a little surprised that the doctor knew this tidbit of information. "How do you know about it?"

"As the chief medical officer it is my duty to familiarize myself with the unique medical concerns of the various Kekkei Genkai's within Konoha. My predecessors wrote extensively on the side effects that occurred before and after the… Anyway, Itachi appears to be suffering from stress. Someone has placed an unwanted expectation on him. If it isn't you, then perhaps someone else is influencing the boy?"

Fugaku growled. "I have an idea who it is." _Madara. So he still has his sticky fingers wrapped around my boy's throat. _

"Then take care of it. I want him back here when he returns from his first mission for an evaluation. Right now, my gut feeling is to not let him go tomorrow, but since he was able to sleep for fourteen hours without interruption I'll let him go anyway."

"Understood." The two men walked back into the room and the doctor sat back down in front of a very nervous Itachi. He had felt a surge of panic when the doctor called his father out of the room, especially with his first mission only hours away.

"You're going to be fine Itachi. This isn't going to affect your mission. I'm going to let you go home now, and I want you to do nothing except rest until your mission starts tomorrow. Okay?" The doctor was smiling.

Itachi looked up at his father, but Fugaku was looking at Shisui. "Yes. I will rest. Thank-you Dr. Yakushi for taking the time out of your busy schedule to assist me."

After the doctor left the room the silence was almost unbearable. Itachi cringed inwardly, expecting to be yelled at. Finally, Fugaku broke the silence.

"Shisui, you are not to speak of anything you have heard in here." He spoke in his most serious voice.

"Yes my lord." Shisui's sleep weary voice answered him with the proper respect.

"I now realize that Madara has been continuing to instruct you two."

The fear that showed in the faces of the two boys was ten times worse than Itachi's nightmare. Mikoto, who had been standing quickly sat down on the side of Itachi's bed, eyes open wide in alarm. Instinctively she reached over and grabbed Itachi's wrist.

Fugaku seemed to be trying to think of what to say next and it was a good five minutes before he spoke again. "Have you ever been told how the Mangekyo Sharingan is achieved?" He activated his own sharingan and looked at the boys.

"No my lord." Both boys spoke at the same time. Itachi had become very polite in his speech. Fugaku could tell they were not lying.

"You have not asked?"

Shisui spoke up. "I asked, yes, but Madara said we were too young to know."

"I will not tell you either. I would like that aspect of our eye Jutsu to disappear forever, but it will not as long as Uchiha exist. I will say this, though. When Madara was an active member of the clan several of his students committed suicide, thus refusing his orders to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan. He chose to call them traitors and erase them from his registry of students. In such a way it could be said that he had a 100 percent pass rate. Most of his students had terrifying nightmares before the awakening. Almost exactly like the one Itachi described."

Itachi gasped in shock and sat up straight in his chair. Shisui sat straight up in his bed. Mikoto quickly ran over to him to get him to lie down again but he refused. This bit of information about Madara was surprising and unexpected. And very disturbing.

Fugaku continued. "And many others killed themselves after the awakening, unable to live with what they had done. Madara may have been erasing their names, but he also called it 'weeding out the weak links'."

"But if I don't know how to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan, how could I have had the dream?" Itachi was starting to get annoyed.

"Good question. Perhaps you heard something and your subconscious is reacting to it instead of your conscious." Fugaku looked down at the boy.

Itachi stood up and yelled. "That's not an answer! I'm tired of these stupid dreams! I can't even sleep! Make them go away!"

Fugaku looked back at his son. "Mikoto and I are perhaps the two strongest shinobi in the Uchiha clan. Both of us combined would be unable to put even a scratch on that evil man. I would like to tell you two to never see him again, but he would insist and, in the worst case, he would remove both of you from Konoha and raise you elsewhere. All I can do is ask you to remain loyal to the clan. Loyal to your parents and cousins. Loyal to Konoha and its inhabitants that look to you for protection."

"Yes my lord." Both boys spoke simultaneously.

'Now what?' Fugaku thought to himself hopelessly. He had told the boys the truth. He could not stand up against that man. They were shinobi and mature for their ages, but they were still children and could be easily deceived or at the least misled. After being gone for decades, Madara had suddenly returned and taken an interest in two young boys to the point that he was spending time training them. He had almost succeeded in kidnapping Sasuke, and would have succeeded if he hadn't stopped for several hours in an attempt to seal the Kyuubi in the baby's small body.

Somehow, he would have to find out what was going on. Given the ages of the boys, whatever Madara was planning would not transpire for many more years to come. A plan started to formulate in the clan chief's head and he smiled. It would work… The sacrifice would be tremendous, but if… when it worked then the Uchiha name would be redeemed and Konoha would be safe.

Looking over at Mikoto he saw that she had finally gotten Shisui to lie back down and was checking the IV needles in his arm to make sure they were still secure. He frowned as his thoughts echoed silently in his mind. 'I'm sorry Mikoto. I'm going to have to use Sasuke for this too.'

Fugaku looked at the two boys again, and his smile turned bittersweet. They would all pay for this. Surprisingly, he realized that he did not feel like a villain for what he was going to do, but a victim for having to rid his beloved village of a man who should have been killed by the First Hokage many generations ago. He also felt a little relieved, knowing that he would not have to act right now. He could take a few years to properly formulate his plan and guide the children, perhaps learn more about Madara using his own sources. He would act on his own. He swore to himself that he would involve only himself and the three boys. That way, if he failed, only the four of them would fall. Hopefully then, the rest of clan would survive and maybe someday earn back the trust of the village.

"Well, while I am here I might as well tell you what your job will be in regard to Uchiha missions." This perked the boys up and they lifted their heads to look at Fugaku. "You two will form a team that will track down, apprehend and return any Genin who go rouge. It should be simple for you two, as most Genin who disappear are doing it out of fear for their lives rather than personal gain or traitorous activity. They are also, for the most part, poorly trained and have few skills. For the Chuunin and Jounin on the police force this is a waste of time, but for you two it should be considered an opportunity to increase your tracking and survival skills, as well as good training for apprehending live prisoners. Killing them is easy; keeping them alive is more difficult.

"When Itachi returns from his mission, and Shisui is cleared to return to active duty I will personally take you both to hunt down a Genin who went AWOL last week. The boy is not expected to be able to cause any trouble with his disappearance so if we have to wait a month its okay. The pay is also low, but after the clan takes it's third you two can split the rest."

Both boys' faces lit up with excitement. Finally…a chance to work for the clan!

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It had taken three days for the infiltration team to reach the stronghold. It didn't look like much and the three new Genin were slightly disappointed after listening to the big buildup Yurina had given them. In fact, the building, though made of stone, was the same size as the cabin they had invaded during their teamwork exercise. There was one ninja sitting on the ground in front of it, sporting a Cloud village forehead protector. Well, that was unexpected, given that they were in Stone.

"Looks like we've got problems." Itachi said quietly. The others nodded.

"At least they are still here. It must mean they are after the same scroll." Yurina pursed her lips, thinking. "That guy seems a little to casual, though. He's actually nodding off."

Yota activated his Byakugan and looked inside the cabin. "There is no one inside."

"There is an underground passage. I'm following the roots down. It's really deep." The girl was silent for a few minutes, concentrating. "I found them. There are two of them. They are ransacking the place, pulling scrolls off the shelves and throwing them on the ground. There's a third, he's small, I guess about Itachi's size and he is holding a scroll in his hand and his other hand is holding an object." Yuri suddenly broke her jutsu. "I think he saw me! He looked straight at me and smiled."

"Then what? Did he alert the others?" Yota was looking intently at the building, waiting to see when the reappeared from the underground passage.

"He… uhh… winked at me." Yuri blushed, but she wasn't sure if it was because she had just given away their presence or because of the wink.

"Hmm. Bad form, Yuri, flirting with the enemy?" Yurina had to tease her. She couldn't resist. She laughed when the younger girl blushed a deeper red.

"He's too young! I wasn't flirting." The words were mumbled but everyone heard them.

"Yurina?" Itachi had been watching the ninja on guard and had realized something. "That guy is not a Cloud ninja. Look! He has another forehead protector on under the Cloud one. You can see it if you look over his left eye."

Yota trained his Byakugan on the man. "It's a Stone insignia."

"What the hell is going on?" Yurina tapped Yuri on the shoulder. "Did you see any forehead protectors on the people inside the building?"

"I didn't look."

"Look again. They know we are here now so it doesn't matter if they see you."

"Ok." She closed her eyes in concentration again. This time the boy waved at her, using the hand with the scroll. The other men in the room ignored him. They didn't seem to be looking for anything, just emptying all of the shelves and throwing the scrolls into the middle of the floor.

"They are wearing Stone forehead protectors, except the boy isn't wearing one at all. He must not be a ninja yet. They are throwing everything on the floor. Guys? I think they are going to start a fire. That's the same thing my uncle did when our clan fled Grass country."

"Is the boy still holding the scroll?" Yurina's voice had taken on an air of urgency.

"Yes. He…uh…waved at me with it."

"Was he showing it to you? Rubbing it in, so to speak?" Itachi was beginning to be intrigued by this boy's bizarre behavior.

Yurina interrupted. "That has to be the scroll we are after. We have to have it, it describes important seals needed to rescue several prisoners of war. If we don't get it our comrades will die."

"What? It's that important?" Yuri was angry. That boy was waving the lives of her fellow villagers in her face.

"The Stone village is due north from here, so when they exit the building they will likely head off in that direction. When they do exit the building, they will probably blow it up to destroy the remaining scrolls inside." Yurina looked north. There was an outcropping of rock barely visible through the pine trees, but it was possible it was a Genjutsu to mask their escape.

"Yota, is that rock beyond the trees real?"

The Hyuuga glanced over. "No. It's a Genjutsu."

Yurina smiled. "Okay. We have to get the scroll without them knowing so we can't attack. It will take them two days to get back to their village. We will follow them, then tonight I will use my poison to incapacitate them. Itachi will then memorize the scroll and we can leave. They will wake up thinking nothing has happened."

"Can't we just grab the scroll?" Itachi thought it all sounded like a lot of work.

"No. If they know it is missing, then they will be alerted that a breakout is pending and they will change the seals around the prisoners, or even kill them all." Yurina smiled at Itachi's look of frustration. She could sense he wasn't frustrated at not being able to take the scroll, but at not realizing what would happen if the enemy found out they took it.

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That night the four Konoha ninja sat about five hundred feet away from where the Stone ninja's had bunked down. It was 1am and the bright evening stars lit the landscape in a soft white glow, creating shadows among the sparse evergreens. They couldn't risk detection so earlier they had taken some soldier pills that Yurina had distributed. It removed their hunger, but the smells of cooking meat wafting through the woods was a little disheartening. Yurina told them they would get used to it soon enough.

"So was my explosion art un?" Everyone jumped about a foot and quickly turned around. Standing behind them was a small boy, the same height as Itachi. He had his long blond hair tied in a top-knot and even in the dim light they could see his bright blue eyes. He was wearing a blue Yukata tied with a white obi, black pants, fingerless gloves and regular civilian type sandals. Smiling ear to ear he waited for them to answer.

"Where the _hell_ did you come from?" Yota was extremely pissed off. "I've had my Byakugan on for ever and I didn't detect you at all."

"You didn't answer my question."

Yota growled. "Answer mine first or I'll slit your neck from ear to ear!"

"From the ground un. Duh! You come into Stone and you don't even think first about what kind of jutsu we use un? I heard Konoha was full of idiots, but I thought those guys" he pointed at his comrades "were just talking out of their asses again un."

Yurina blushed in embarrassment. "I'm sorry Yuri, it's my fault. I should have asked you to monitor the ground."

"Well, I should have thought of it myself. I am from Grass country after all."

"You haven't answered my question yet." The blond boy was getting obstinate. "Did you think my explosion was art?"

"Art?" Itachi finally spoke up. "What is art? Why should I care? And more importantly, why are you here?"

The boy looked at Itachi like he was an idiot. Stepping forward a couple feet his face was lit by the bright starlight and the foursome could see it more clearly. Or rather, the bruises that covered it. His left eye was almost swollen shut and he had a large black and blue bruise over his right cheek. There were lighter colored bruises on his forehead. When he lifted his arm to reach into his Yukata they could also see bruises on his arm.

"Kid, what happened? You're covered in bruises." Yurina's voice was concerned. They had dropped out of sight of the Stone ninja's for several hours after they blew up the stronghold, only coming near them again four hours ago.

The boy frowned. It was a pathetic look that melted Yurina's heart. "My master didn't think it was art un. He… he thinks I'm insane and if he beats me enough I'll get some sense knocked into me un."

"Well, kid, I thought it was art. The explosion was very loud and bright." Yurina smiled at him as she shot the other's a look that she hoped said "play along."

Yuri caught on and continued the praise. "I would loved to have seen it at night. The brightness of the flames would surely have outshone the moon."

"I think you should hit your master back and make him pay what he did to you." Yota wasn't going to praise him. But he thought some constructive criticism would be okay.

"Yeah." Itachi was getting impatient. He didn't want to play whatever game this brat was leading them into. Why was he here anyway? Just to obtain the praise his master refused him? Or was he a front for an attack? He glanced at Yuri and saw that she was paying attention to the boy, but that she was also concentrating. She must be sending her chakra into the roots to try to detect enemies underground. Yota also had his Byakugan on, watching the boy and his comrades.

"He's stronger than me. But I've got a plan un. I'm a genius and I know exactly how to get back at him un." He pulled a scroll out of his Yukata and extended it to Yuri. "You can have this."

"What?" Yuri was baffled, but she quickly reached up and took the scroll from him. The boy put his hands up and started to make a hand sign.

"Stop!" Itachi reached over and grabbed the boys arm, releasing it when he flinched in pain. "Wait a few minutes. I'll memorize it, then give it back to you."

"But what will that do un? Then he will get praised for keeping it safe instead of punished for failing. I don't _want_ him to be my master anymore!" The boy looked like he was going to start crying. Itachi ignored him and quickly grabbed the scroll from Yuri and started memorizing it.

"Where are your parents?" Yurina wanted to keep him talking.

"Mother died and father remarried, but his new wife didn't want somebody else's kid so father kicked me out of the house. I lived on the streets for a while until this old man took me to the Village hidden in the Stones and enrolled me in the Academy un. But they said I was too young to live alone so I have to live with my master. He teaches me a lot of things, but a year ago he started to hit me a lot un."

"I'm sorry. Yuri and Yota are orphans too. Have you taken your Genin exam yet?" She glanced at Itachi and saw that he was a quarter of the way through the scroll.

"Yes un. But I have a bruise on the back of my head so it hurts when I wear my forehead protector un. If you give the scroll back I'm going to throw it away un."

"What's your name?"

"Deidara un. I don't have a last name, when my father kicked me out he told to never use it again un."

"Well, Deidara, when we use the information in the scroll I guarantee your master will get into a lot of trouble."

"When you use it un?" Deidara thought about it for minute and the smile returned to his face. "That works un. They'll think you got there before we did, and since master insisted on stopping for sake on the way here he could be in a lot more trouble that just this un."

Itachi rolled the scroll up and handed it back to him without saying anything. Deidara smirked as he put the scroll back in his Yukata, then performed the hand seals to disappear back into the ground. Yuri and Yota quickly used their jutsu's to track him.

Yota sighed. "I lost him as soon as he hit the ground."

"I see him. He's fast. Not as fast as my uncle, but still fast." Yuri dropped her jutsu.

"Let's get out of here." Yurina motioned with her arms and the four of them took off running through the trees away from the enemy ninja. She smiled when she thought about Deidara. He was definitely someone to keep track of. She would report what she saw to Anbu and have them begin a file on him. He had successfully snuck up on them and even though she had made it sound like she hadn't been paying attention, she had, and that kid had evaded her.

"Do you think he was lying?" Itachi had trouble believing that someone would betray their village just to seek revenge on one person. Although, glancing over at Yota, perhaps it wasn't that unbelievable after all.

"No, he wasn't lying." Yurina had no doubt about that. The hurt in the boy's eyes was real. "It's sad, but children like him are easy to manipulate into betrayal. They can't see beyond their own family so they don't understand their place in the village."

"That's easy for you to say." Yota spat at her, he was still angry. "But where was the village when my father attacked me and tried to kill me? Or when Itachi's father broke his arm? Or when Yuri's paranoid uncle ties her up at night so she won't run away?"

Yuri gulped. "How…how did you know about that?"

Yurina frowned. She knew he was right. She also knew she should just let the matter drop and not say anything. But… "I'm sorry. But the fact is life is hard. It's harder for ninja children most of all. The laws of Fire country that protect civilian children don't pertain to us. And even if we were civilians… parents still abandon their children, beat them harshly, and children will always be found living on the streets. If you think you are special or singled out because of your past, Yota, you need to think twice and get a clue. If there was a way…if there was a way to have a world without war, without ninja, a peaceful world, I would follow that path in an instant. But until then, we are all ninja and we have to find a way to at least deal with it."

Itachi watched as Yota's face drained of emotion. But Yurina was right in a way. It was so easy to see the clan as the whole world and forget the rest of the world that lay beyond the twenty foot walls surrounding the compound. That boy…Deidara…had looked at Itachi with eyes that did not recognize him as a clan heir to the Uchiha name. He was just some random kid to him. Itachi smiled. In retrospect, that actually felt good. But then again, he enjoyed being a ninja and fighting and he longed for the day when he would gain his Sharingan.

"Life really is a double edged sword, isn't it?" Itachi barely spoke the words out loud, but to the rest of his team they echoed louder than Deidara's explosion.

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It was the last week of August before Fugaku, Itachi and Shisui could go after the missing Genin. The summer had been busy. Itachi and his team had already completed three missions. Shisui and his team had been put to work inventorying the Hokage's public records while they recovered. The police force was still busting shoplifters, chasing after deserters and sending squads on missions for the Hokage.

The day before they were to leave Madara called Itachi and Shisui and requested that they meet him outside of town. Remembering what Fugaku had told them a few weeks earlier in the hospital both boys were nervous about seeing him. In fact, they had even avoided Kabuto and when possible, Yota.

When they joined Madara in the woods he picked up on their hesitation immediately. He had been passing through on his way to the Cloud village and had decided to see the boys for a short conversation. Plus, he had gotten wind of a rather disturbing conversation and felt the need to check up on "his" boys. However, he had to be careful. It was true that Fugaku could not hurt him, but he was wrong in thinking that he could not keep the boys from him. The masked man needed their cooperation, and if they decided they did not want him as their mentor anymore then he would be in a lot of trouble. As young boys they were easily manipulated, but Itachi was now seven and Shisui would be ten in a month or so. They were starting to be old enough to form their own opinions and ideas of the world. And they were both very intelligent which meant deception was out of the question. He would have to give them a reason to _want_ his guidance instead of Fugakus. And that reason would have to come from their own hearts, their own desires. Once Madara knew that, then he could promise them the moon and they would follow him.

Smiling, Madara greeted them then leaned back against a tree and folded his arms. "Shisui, you have awaked your sharingan. Let me see."

Shisui's eyes turned red and two tomoe appeared in each. He looked up at Madara but didn't say anything. He had a petulant expression on his face.

The man put a gloved hand on the boys head and looked into his eyes. "Shisui, there is no need to act like this. I am aware of the conversation you two had with Fugaku. And believe me it changes nothing. I do not know what deviltry he thinks I am going to commit, but I assure you, you boys are safe with me." He grasped the Shisui's chin and held it firm as he looked deep into the boy's eyes.

Shisui felt like someone was poking around in his brain. It was a strange feeling, kind of like a cross between an echo and the fuzzy feeling you get in your head right before you pass out. He tried to step back but Madara was holding his chin too tight. The feeling slowly passed and Madara sighed.

"You have a very strong sharingan, Shisui. True to your heritage, you have an amazing potential." Madara almost gloated. He was very pleasantly surprised at what he had seen. The young boy had one of the most powerful Sharingans he had ever seen. He could hardly wait to see what Itachi and Sasuke would have.

"So Itachi, you are a Genin now. How was your first mission?" He changed the subject so he could give the other boy some attention. Itachi had been fidgeting. Something he rarely ever did.

"It was odd." He didn't elaborate. After all, that was a good description of it.

Madara gave a short laugh. "Always to the point. Tell me about it. What was so odd about it?"

"Well we went after a scroll, but this kid who was my age wanted to give it to us instead so his master would get in trouble. He was covered in bruises because his master was beating him. Something about explosions being art and…"

"Describe the boy!" Madara was suddenly alert. The "covered in bruises" part was not good news.

"Umm…" Itachi was a little surprised at his mentor's sudden words. "He had long blond hair in a top knot and blue eyes, and he smiled a lot, and he was very talkative. His name was Deidara."

"Shit!" Madara cursed and hit the tree he had been standing against a couple minutes earlier.

Itachi frowned. "You know him?"

Madara thought about that for a minute. Should he say something? Well, he had to now. "Not as 'Madara' but in a disguise as an old man. I found him living on the streets of the capital when he was four and took him to the village hidden in the Stones so he could attend the Academy. He is an intelligent boy with an interesting Kekkei Genkai. He also has tremendous potential with Genjitsu, even though he refuses to study it. However, since he was not an Uchiha he was not worthy of my personal instruction. I hired a man to act as his guardian, but it seems he has overstepped his authority. If the boy acts out of desperation to escape his abuser it could cause me a lot of problems. Did you happen to see his explosions?"

"Yes. It was quite effective at destroying the stronghold the scrolls were kept in."

"That was only a small one, it sounds like. Let's just say that little boy has the ability to blow up the entire Stone village using only his chakra and a little bit of clay. He can be a fairly mature little boy when he wants to be, but unlike you two, he has a very short temper and sometimes acts without thinking. He needs a babysitter to hold his hand, so to speak, when he gets mad."

Madara leaned against the tree again, thinking. "Itachi, Shisui, if either of you run into this boy again don't mention what you know about him. He is being raised without any knowledge of his life's direction. He is an independent sort and if he knew he would overreact."

"What good is he if you have to babysit him?" Shisui had done a couple missions where they had to babysit older children for nobles and it was not fun. In fact, it annoyed him so much he told his sensei if he ever had to do another mission like that he would refuse it.

"Let's just say I'm taking a rather large gamble. And as with all gambling, there is a chance that I am wasting my time. However, there is also a chance that this boy is a diamond in the rough. But when it comes right down to it, I hate to see potential wasted, and this boy was definitely in the same class as you two when it comes to potential." He was going to have to delay his trip to Cloud and head over to Stone and find the boy a new guardian. The last thing he needed right now was an over-sensitive, emotional, seven-year-old pyromaniac artist wanna-be blowing up the countryside. Although…the sudden visage of the cheerful child standing over the ruins of a destroyed city with a big grin on his face was rather amusing.

Itachi continued talking. "His guardian might already be dead. The scroll had important information about prisoners of war and he let me memorize it because if we had it his master would be punished for failing the mission."

Madara started laughing. "I can't believe it. So the boy is finally showing some analytical skills. Well, I'm going to be heading off to Stone now anyway to check up on him."

"So what are your plans for him? What are your plans for us? They must be interrelated at some point." Shisui was suspicious and had been wanting to ask that question for a long time.

Madara looked down at the boy. Shisui had not been raised with the strict discipline Itachi had, and felt little fear in asking difficult questions. Glancing at Itachi he could see the boys face was a little sad. Upset, no doubt, because he didn't think of the question. Discipline made the boy easier to mold, but it also took away some things as well. Fugaku no doubt wanted it this way.

"I want the three of you to be strong. Orphans are often left to their own devices, with no guardians or guidance the ninja villages give them a place to live and a stipend for food. Most cases this might be on fringes of being acceptable, but with Deidara, like I said, he has the nasty habit of blowing things up when he has a temper tantrum. Although it sounds like he is starting to think a little more about cause and effect. As for the three of you together, he is from Stone, you two are from Leaf. If anything, you are rivals."

Shisui looked Madara in the eye and frowned. "That did not even come close to answering my question."

Madara's smile left his face. So Shisui is going to be a problem. He would have to spend some "alone" time with the boy when he returned from Stone. It was too bad Shisui was the oldest instead of Itachi. It would make him so much easier to deal with.

"What are my plans for you, Shisui? I plan on providing you with the power you need to stand by Itachi's side in front of a powerful Uchiha clan. Your eyes will join with his to create the future that was taken away from us when the First Hokage defeated me all those years ago.

"As for Deidara. As I said he has considerable ability with Genjutsu. He is on reserve, so to speak. _If_ _the time_ _comes_ I will pull him forward and instruct him myself in its use. I have many such people in similar reserve. I won't need most of them.

"Does this answer your question Shisui?" Madara tried to keep his voice light, but he was feeling a little pissed off. He wanted to have a real conversation with the boy but he couldn't in front of Itachi, and there was someone nearby.

Shisui looked down at the ground. He had not bought the story.

"Madara? Before you go, I have a question." Itachi's voice was quieter than usual. "I've been having nightmares and…do you know any way to make them stop?"

The tall man closed his eyes and calmed his mind. If Itachi would ask his advice about such an embarrassing subject, then he at least still trusts him somewhat.

Madara saw the boy's discomfort, and a memory of his brother's terrified face came to mind. A skilled warrior reduced to screaming over the horrors of a nightmare as Madara tried to wake him up. It wasn't something he would wish on anyone.

"I'm sorry Itachi, but my brother also had nightmares. He tried everything, from sleeping potions, to drugs, to hypnosis…Anything… But in the end the dreams always came. I have heard some say that the Uchiha blood causes them in a fit of conscience. But you have done nothing to warrant such a conflict of beliefs. If you were older, perhaps it would make sense. "

Itachi smiled. "Then I'll just have to find a way to live with it instead of fighting it. Did he ever try that?"

"I…don't think he did. Hmm. You are an interesting individual, Itachi. Whatever happens, that is a good attitude to have, anyway. Well I've got to go. I believe I have a guest waiting for me nearby. You two boys go home. I'll contact you soon."

After the boys disappeared from view Madara activated his Sharingan and waited. Fugaku stepped out from behind a large tree and faced him, his own Sharingan blazing.

"So we meet again. I understand Naruto and Sasuke are both in excellent health?" Madara gave a small chuckle; his voice had taken on a sinister edge.

"Well enough. And safe from your clutches." Fugaku's tone was dead serious.

"If only you knew, Fugaku, I have been close enough to both boys on several occasions to touch them. I believe it was Sasuke that liked crackers and Naruto that liked ramen. They are so sweet when they are young, aren't they? So different from Itachi, who would eat a bag of jelly beans if you let him, or Shisui who loved potato chips. And then we have dear, sweet, loving Mikoto. Her kisses are surely the wine of the Gods." Madara was gloating.

Fugaku fought to restrain his anger. When had he been that close to the two toddlers? Naruto was being raised in the hospital orphanage. He was under constant supervision and had an ANBU guard nearby at all times. Sasuke was protected by Mikoto who was a very powerful kunoichi in her own right. Unless he was in disguise? But then again, not many people had ever seen Madara. He could easily walk up to anyone and no one would be the wiser.

And Mikoto? Was Madara trying to freak him out or did he actually kiss the woman? 'My wife!' Fugaku yelled in his mind.

"So there is nothing to be done about Itachi's nightmares. As I figured. The old man no doubt saw this when he looked into the boys eyes at the ceremony three years ago."

"Itachi is mine, Fugaku. Keep your hands off of him." Madara decided to get straight to the point.

"And Shisui?" Fugaku was almost afraid to ask.

"Shisui. Hmm. What shall we do with Shisui? I know, let's let Itachi decide that for us? Then we don't have to do anything."

"You bastard! Have you mentioned anything about the Mangekyou Sharingan to the boys?"

"No. And I don't plan to either. I figure they will find out on their own. Or from you. I don't want to scare them. I want them to be powerful Uchiha, not scared little boys who hide under the bed."

Fugaku turned around and started walking away.

"That was all?" Madara was a little confused at the clan lord's willingness to back off.

"There is no point in saying anything more. You were once lord of this clan, yet you do not act like one. Instead of looking to the greater good of the collective, you look inward at your own power. I executed your followers. There is no one left in the village to whisper your lies into the ears of young boys." Fugaku walked off into the woods leaving Madara alone.

The masked ex-clan lord stared at the retreating man. Fugaku was up to something or he wouldn't have backed off so easily. Smiling, Madara welcomed the challenge. However meager it might be.

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**Please review!**

**Next week Itachi and Shisui get to go on their first mission for the Uchiha clan.**


	22. Chapter 22 First Uchiha Mission

**In the last chapter Itachi and his new team had their first mission and met a strange kid name Deidara. Fugaku realizes that Madara is still training the boys, and comes up with a plan to one day destroy the man. Madara meets with Itachi and Shisui, and then Fugaku.**

**Thanks for the reviews and fav's xD**

**Kishimoto owns everything.**

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**Chapter 22 – The First Uchiha Mission**

The forest was filled with the sounds of an early morning in summer. Birds were singing, insects were buzzing, cicadas were calling to each other, and the wind was blowing through the branches and the shrubs. The air smelled heavy, promising hot weather in a few short hours.

A man and two children walked silently on the wide dirt path. They had been walking for two hours and for all appearances were not in a hurry. All three wore small backpacks and were heavily armed with kunai, throwing stars, tags, swords and a few other items hidden in the recesses of their numerous pockets.

Fugaku, Itachi and Shisui had set out early to hunt down a missing Genin boy. It was the boys' first clan mission and Fugaku's first chance to see the boys in action. He had indicated to them that he had nothing but the highest of expectations for their abilities. He had said it in such a serious manner that the message imparted onto the boys was that the consequences for failing would be dire. Fugaku did have high hopes for the boys. He had another purpose for them and they would live up to that purpose no matter what. Especially his son. Shisui's role could possibly be replaced, but not Itachi's. He was the key to his father's plan and no one else could take his place.

The silence between the three had little to do with companionship and everything to do with an incident that happened when they were leaving Konoha.

_A mother with three children watched as Fugaku, Itachi and Shisui walked passed her. Lifting her hand she pointed at them. _

"_That is the man. He belongs to the clan that allowed the Kyuubi to attack and kill your father. The whole clan should be wiped out! Leaving me a widow with three mouths to feed! A curse on you and your kin Uchiha!" The three young children looked at them with wide eyes, the oldest, probably only four years old, had tears in her eyes. A fact not missed by the observant trio._

Fugaku and his police force had been having trouble with a small number of vocal Konoha citizens who equated Kyuubi with Uchiha and were attempting to undermine their authority. They spoke to the Third Hokage and to the council, questioning their wisdom in allowing the Uchiha to remain in the village. The Third stood up for them, as did the excellent record of Uchiha successes in missions and village defense, but it wasn't enough. The whispering and finger-pointing continued.

_Itachi stopped walking and looked at the woman. Fugaku stopped to watch his son's reaction, silently praying the boy wouldn't stir up any trouble. The young heir had a dark expression his face as he met the gaze of the widow. The woman locked her eyes onto the boy then stepped back in shock, her hand reflexively coming up to cover her mouth. Itachi then turned around and continued walking. Even without the Sharingan he had eyes powerful enough to make that woman, who was actually a Chuunin, back down. _

There was no doubt in the elder Uchiha's mind that Itachi would one day be a powerful ninja, but that morning's performance was certainly proof of how powerful the boy's Sharingan would be when it manifested. Fugaku could force the eye jutsu to come now. Obviously Itachi's eyes were developed enough; all they needed was a strong enough emotion to awaken the clan's trait.

Forcing the Sharingan to appear in young boys was not unusual in the Uchiha clan. However, it was not commonly done as it was seen as cruel and Fugaku had trouble remembering how long it had been since the last time. The Sharingan usually didn't appear until puberty – around eleven to fourteen years of age. Shisui had awoken his at nine, however. And Itachi was now seven.

He could not wait until Itachi was eleven. Fugaku decided that if Itachi did not have the Sharingan by his eighth birthday he would force it. After all, if he was to use his son as a tool to defeat Madara he would need to train him properly, and the Sharingan was the most important part of an Uchiha's training. Silently, he hoped that with the type of missions the Hokage was sending Itachi's Genin team on, the Sharingan would appear without any intervention.

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The trio stopped for lunch next to a small stream. Shisui quickly sat down, stripped off his sandals and dipped his feet in the cold water.

"Feet hurt kid?" Fugaku smirked.

"No my Lord!" Shisui answered too quickly. "I just…uhh…like the cold water. It's hot out."

Fugaku smiled inwardly. Toshiro had the same habit.

"By the way, Itachi, that was a pretty good job of intimidation back there. However, the best thing to do when you hear comments like that is to just keep walking." Fugaku sat down against a tree and watched as Itachi lowered his gaze and stared at the ground. "Go ahead and sit down, son, eat your lunch."

"Yes my Lord." Itachi had been told to address his father formally on missions to maintain an heir of professionalism. Also it disguised their relationship and hopefully would prevent attacks on the Uchiha's line of succession.

"Madara caused us a lot of problems when he attacked a couple years ago. That woman was just one voice of many that has come forward to disparage our clan's good name." Fugaku watched the boy's faces carefully as he spoke. He had heard Shisui's hesitation the day before when questioning Madara, but Itachi still seemed to hold some small trust for the man.

Itachi's answer, therefore, wasn't unexpected. "They should be grateful. Many Uchiha died to protect them."

Shisui countered bitterly. "If Madara hadn't attacked we wouldn't have had to defend them. If he wants to strengthen us, why undermine our authority in the village? He abandoned his followers – our cousins - to execution."

Fugaku frowned. "I am glad you can understand that, Shisui."

Itachi sighed. He didn't understand Shisui's sudden change of heart. After all, Shisui had been the one to deride him for crying at the execution, and he had lusted after Madara's Mangekyou Sharingan. Itachi didn't actually care for what Madara had done to the village, too many people had died and he did leave his followers to be executed. But the boy was equally sure that if _he_ had been one of the condemned his mentor would have saved _him_. Madara would never abandon him.

He remembered their first meeting, when he had hidden under a bush after running away from his father. The man had been nice to him, alleviating the pain in his broken arm and making his fear go away. And then in the park, after he had attacked him, Madara had responded by restraining him instead of beating him like his father would have. Many times after that he had wished that the tall, masked man had been his father instead of Fugaku. His father's lessons were full of pain while Madara's lessons were promises of power.

Madara had also run back to the Stone village to check up on that Deidara kid. He had truly been disturbed when he discovered the boy was being mistreated. Itachi knew that the same would be reciprocated for him. Didn't Shisui see that? Didn't he appreciate the training the powerful man was giving them?

Or…was Shisui putting on an act for Fugaku? Itachi looked at his cousin but saw nothing out of the ordinary. The older boy was leaning back on his elbows with his legs in the water up to his knees. He made a note to talk to him about it later, probably when the mission was over.

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Mikoto rolled the stroller across the street and into the park. With both her husband and oldest son gone the house would be quiet. Well, quieter. Neither one of them ever made much noise, or were messy. In fact, Itachi was so neat it sometime creeped her out. How many seven-year-old boys alphabetized their book collection? Or folded their dirty laundry? Or made their bed every morning? His room was so neat and orderly it was almost like no one lived there.

Fugaku wasn't nearly as tidy as his son, but he did pick up after himself. Of course, it was ninja training that was telling them to leave no trace of their passing. That it echoed into their personal lives was not hard to understand. Well, Sasuke made up for it anyway. His messes were pretty bad. He was still a little clumsy. Mikoto had decided one day to start training him to use chopsticks, but it was a disaster. Kisa later told her to let him practice picking up objects first instead of food. She wished she had thought of that before she ended up having to scrub the table, the floor, her clothes, the ceiling and a laughing toddler.

Sitting herself down on a bench she lifted Sasuke out of the stroller and set him on the ground with his stuffed bear. The boy sat still and watched the surrounding area, as if he heard something. They were in a small clearing protected by thick bushes and the tall trees that prevented the hot sun from getting through. It was Mikoto's favorite place for relaxing in private.

Mikoto sensed someone coming and turned to look at the path. A tall man, dressed in black with shoulder length hair and a kind smile walked into view.

"Tobi." Mikoto was very surprised to see him in Konoha. Especially in the park.

"Mikoto, my dearest love. How have you been?" His smile was warm and friendly and he sat down only a few inches from her.

"I've been great." She returned his smile, remembering their last meeting and the kiss they had shared. Suddenly realizing his proximity she tried to scoot away but he wrapped one arm around her shoulders, holding her in place.

"That's good. It would break my heart to see you in tears again. I see Sasuke is growing up healthy and strong." With his free hand he reached over and stroked the boys head. Sasuke looked up at him and smiled, but didn't say anything.

"A little shy, isn't he?" Tobi laughed.

"He…doesn't meet many strangers. I don't think he can remember you from last time since he wasn't even a year old then." Mikoto was trying to think of a polite way to extract herself from his arm. She didn't know why she was so worried about offending him.

He moved his head close to hers and whispered in her ear. "Mikoto, am I making you uncomfortable?"

"I…um…we can talk, but please remove your arm." She spoke quietly.

"But what if I don't want to talk?" He wrapped his other arm around her chest. Mikoto realized that he had her arms trapped.

"Then…Then I should be…leaving." Mikoto tried to lift her arms but the man's hold was too strong. "Why are you here? Please release me." Her voice rose a little, but she was starting to have trouble talking.

Tobi gave a short, friendly laugh. "Do not feel nervous. Why are you being so polite? Do you enjoy my embrace? Did you look forward to someday feeling my arms around you again?"

Mikoto struggled to escape but she wasn't trying very hard. Again she wondered why she was being careful not to offend him.

"Please release me?" This time it was a plea instead of a request. Her heart was starting to beat rapidly and she could feel her cheeks flush.

The tall man moved his arm away from her back to grip the back of her neck. Turning her head to face him he uttered a soft "No" and caught her lips in a passionate kiss. She leaned into him and responded eagerly.

Breaking away to let the woman catch her breath he smiled. "Does Fugaku make you feel this way?"

Before she could catch herself Mikoto shook her head and said "No." Quickly realizing what she had just said she pushed harder against her captor. He refused to budge.

"One night Mikoto. That's all I ask for. One night and I can give you everything Fugaku can't." His dark eyes caught hers and she found herself unable to look away.

"What are you asking? Why are you doing this?" She continued to struggle, but for some reason she didn't try very hard. She decided he probably was using some advanced Genjutsu on her. But who would be strong enough to do such a thing?

Her mind went back a few weeks to Shisui's hospital room and her husband's revelation.

This man. It had to be.

"Madara! Get your bloody hands off of me now!" She broke the Genjutsu and regained her strength, but it wasn't enough.

The man grabbed her arms tightly and stood up, pulling her with him. "You are an intelligent woman, Mikoto dearest. I didn't expect you to figure it out so soon."

Mikoto glanced around the clearing and saw Sasuke hiding under a bush. His eyes were wide and his face was streaked with tears, but he was being silent. As long as he stayed hidden maybe Madara would ignore him.

"How dare you come here! After what you did to Sasuke and Kagura! What are you after?"

"You."

Mikoto was dumbstruck. "Me?"

"One night."

The woman gulped. "Why?"

Madara smirked. "Because I can." He released her and disappeared.

Mikoto dropped to her knees and started sobbing. She had never been so scared in her whole life. He truly believed he could take whatever he wanted simply because he was _able_ to take it. That was so wrong. So wrong. Fugaku had said he was training Itachi and Shisui. He had tried to kidnap Sasuke and only failed because he stopped to deal with the Kyuubi, and he had led her best friend Kagura astray. It was all so wrong.

Sasuke crawled out from under the bush and approached his mother. She picked him up and held him close to her, rocking slightly back and forth. She knew the truth, even if Fugaku thought he was hiding it. Madara would take her sons. One way or another, they would be his.

If only there was a way to stop it. She suddenly stopped crying and looked down at Sasuke. He was still being uncharacteristically silent. Almost as if he knew her feelings and was trying to support her. He was such a good son.

"Sasuke, if I…if I let him…will he leave you alone?" Mikoto was a kunoichi and she had done a few missions that were, well, of a "personal" nature. The last one had been a few months after Itachi had been born. Fugaku hadn't even thought twice about it. Of course, she suspected he also had some fun going on in some of the border towns, but it had never bothered her either.

Closing her eyes she silently wished that Fugaku was home. She wanted desperately to talk to him. To find out more about Madara. To find out what they could do to protect Itachi and Sasuke, and Shisui for that matter. But more than that she wanted to know how Fugaku felt about her. And she wanted to know how she felt about Fugaku.

Standing in a tree nearby Madara watched the woman collapse and hold her son tightly to her chest. He smiled. "You are now doubting your relationship with Fugaku. Good. But Mikoto, for the record, I will make no deals with you. At least…none that I will keep." He turned around and jumped back into the trees. After all, he had matters in the Stone village to sort out. And when he came back, perhaps he would have a bit of fun.

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Fugaku proved to be a very patient teacher. He let the boys look at the maps and clues, allowed them to follow leads and ask civilians questions. He had allotted three weeks for the mission, and was therefore pleasantly surprised when, after only one week they came up with their first solid lead.

The boy had stayed on a farm for a few days doing odd jobs, but had run off in the middle of the night. The lady of the house said he barely spoke, didn't look anyone in the eye, and worked long hours. But he was a little creepy and her grandchildren were afraid of him. After assuring the woman that the boy was not wanted for anything more than desertion (she nearly panicked at the thought of her young grandchildren being near a criminal) they got her to identify him in a photo. She then got a burst of conscious and made them promise that the boy would not be executed. They assured her that the worst would be a few weeks in prison as long as he kept his nose clean.

"So now we have to figure out where he went from here." Itachi stood in the small bunkhouse the boy had slept in. The farmer's wife had already completely cleaned the room and swore there was nothing left behind when the boy ran away.

"Well, let's look at the map again." Shisui reached into his shirt pocket and pulled it out.

"Too bad the other kids were too afraid of him to talk to him." Itachi had spoken to the five children earlier. They ranged in age from four to thirteen. They were actually fairly cheerful kids who took an instant liking to the young shinobi. They asked Itachi a barrage of questions about Konoha, ninja, and what it was like to travel. Being farm kids they had never been anywhere but the local village. The fact that these otherwise gregarious children had avoided the missing-nin was disturbing and Itachi was sure it was a clue somehow.

Shisui used a pencil to draw a circle around the local village. North of the village was Rice country. A small agricultural country that had no ninja village, but contained several independent shinobi clans.

"Itachi, could you pull out his profile papers again?" Shisui had an idea.

"Sure. Let's see. His name is Kii Tachiki, eleven years old, born in Konoha, orphan. Here it is, Shisui. His parents were from Rice country."

"Does it say where in Rice?" Shisui moved closer to his cousin so he could look at the paper as well.

"No. I suppose we could just go up there, find one of the clans and talk to them. They might recognize something about the boy."

"Yeah, perhaps he's running away to his family. However, if that were the case why would he be taking so long to do it?" Shisui sat down on the bed.

"Maybe they won't like that he ran away or he's trying to talk himself into something. Maybe they even lured him away and he's trying to avoid them?" Itachi's imagination was starting to kick in. He looked back at the boy's profile. He had no advanced jutsu's or bloodlines.

Fugaku smirked. "So what's your decision?"

The boys looked at each other, and Itachi answered. "We head north to Rice country."

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Fugaku drew up a map of Rice country for the boys that contained the known territories of the various clans. None of whom shared the same last name as the missing ninja. Unfortunately.

The boys decided that the first course of business would be to contact the clan operating in the territory they were currently in. However, exactly how they would do that was a bit of a problem. Konoha had no formal relations with the smaller country and the current war had created many problems for the country. The peasants they passed on the road glanced at them warily and a restaurant and two inns had flat out refused to serve them.

Setting up camp a couple miles outside of a village Itachi sat and stared at the stars. Why would a boy return to a country that hated him? Then it hit him. "Shisui, I think I know what is going on."

Shisui, who had been half asleep sat up. "What?"

"Imagine if you lived in another city, but your parents are from Konoha. They tell you happy stories about their childhoods and their family. You grow up believing that your parent's home is better than where you are now. You are unhappy and start to think that the only way to be happy is to go to the place your parents are from. But the problem is that your parent's relatives are going to hate you because you grew up somewhere else instead of in Konoha with them."

Shisui continued the story. "So after a bad day you impulsively decide to run away, but once you are gone you are too scared to come back, and you are too scared to go forward."

Fugaku, who had been standing nearby listening interrupted. "That is a good deduction, boys. If it is true we have another problem, one I don't think you have much exposure with so I'm just going to tell you instead of letting you guess. Judging by his behavior at the last farm he was obviously depressed and distancing himself from other human beings. If he truly feels he has no place to turn to he may try to kill himself. In that case, he could already be dead. Or he could take up with group of criminals who prey off of lonely young shinobi, using their skills to commit crime. Rice country is full of rogue gangs. So many, in fact, that most shop owners and farmers end up paying protection money to stay in business."

"So we need to find a local ninja clan and talk to..." Shisui suddenly activated his Sharingan and jumped to his feet, instinctively moving to stand in front of Itachi.

Fugaku sighed and leaned back against a nearby tree. "Well, it looks like we're going to be talking to a gang first."

A woman walked into the Konoha ninja's makeshift camp and looked at the man and two boys. She was medium height, thin, with short green hair. She was carrying a spear with a rather nasty looking twelve inch blade on the end. A few seconds later the three ninja's were surrounded by about forty other men and women.

The woman turned to Fugaku. "So, taking your kids out on expedition? Training them how to kill innocent peasants for fun and profit?"

Itachi walked around his cousin and faced the woman's back. If he and Shisui were supposed to be learning how to handle missions on their own, then he wanted to deal with the woman himself.

"We have killed no one since entering Rice country. We are only here to find a missing boy. His family is from Rice and we think he may be up here." Itachi spoke in a polite, clear voice, devoid of emotion. When the woman turned around he looked her straight in the eye and waited patiently for her to answer.

The gang's leader turned back around and faced Fugaku. "Are you going to let a five-year-old speak for you?"

Fugaku smirked. "No."

Shisui gave a short laugh when he heard the clan lords answer.

"So. Why are you here?" She obviously didn't get the joke.

Itachi spoke again. "We are here, as I have already explained, to find a missing boy."

The woman glared at Itachi, and addressed Fugaku again. "I thought you weren't going to let a five-year-old speak for you?"

Fugaku laughed. Something Itachi and Shisui had rarely ever heard him do. "I assure you, lady, Itachi is not five-years-old. I also assure you that pissing him off will result in rather dire consequences for you."

The surrounding gang members laughed at the ninja's arrogance.

"You can't be serious. The kids cute, definitely someone to look up in another fifteen years, but as for now, he couldn't hurt a flea." The woman looked Itachi in the eyes as she spoke.

Shisui stepped away from his cousin, toward Fugaku.

"Where are you going?" The woman gave Shisui an amused look.

"I'm getting out of the kids way. Unlike you, I don't want to have to tell the medics I got beat up by a little kid because I was too stupid to move out of the way." Shisui sat down on the ground a foot away from Fugaku.

The woman glanced back at Itachi. "Itachi, huh? My name is Ritsuo. Hmm. So you think you can beet me in a fight. I am the leader of a gang of a hundred members. You won't be able to put a scratch on me."

"When I win, you will lend me your resources to find the boy." Itachi's words were stated as a fact.

"You are a demanding young man. What do you say you ditch your father and brother over there and join me?" Ritsuo was impressed with the boy's guts. He could be an asset.

Itachi didn't answer. Instead he crouched down to prepare for a ninjitsu attack. Ritsuo tossed her spear aside then stood straight and folded her arms in front of her. She figured that one kick and the boy would start crying.

Itachi disappeared and reappeared behind Ritsuo. Dropping onto the ground he swung his legs under her and quickly stood up as she fell to the ground. He then threw himself in the air and twisted his body so he was on his back and landed heavily on Ritsuo's chest and stomach. Standing up quickly again he dodged Ritsuo's hand as she tried to grab him. Getting on her knees she tried to stand up, but Itachi kicked her in the small of her back and she pitched forward onto her hands.

Pulling a sword Ritsuo forced herself onto her knees again. Itachi had been moving so quickly that the whole fight so far had been only a little over a minute. The gang members surrounding them had stopped their laughing and cajoling and were instead looking at the young boy in shock.

Itachi pulled his own sword and instead of parrying Ritsuo's swing, sliced into her shoulder. "You little brat! Don't you know how to fight with a sword?"

"You arrogant fool. Have you never fought a ninja before?" Itachi wasn't one to tease his opponent, but he felt it needed to be said. The woman was a civilian and much weaker than him. All of her followers were also civilian's.

"What does that have to do with anything? Fight fair, you little ingrate!"

"Surrender."

"Why should I?"

"I will not kill someone weaker than me. But if you force me into a corner I will defend myself."

"Huh!" Ritsuo stood up and ran at Itachi, swinging her sword. Itachi dodged each of her thrusts then slid under her, again tripping her. She fell forward onto her face and when she looked up her nose was bleeding. Itachi kicked her in the head and stabbed her thigh. Pulling the sword out he jumped back.

"Surrender." He held up the sword so she could see the blood. Itachi stared at the blade. It was dark out, but he could still see the stain on the silver blade. He ran the fingers of his free hand through the slippery substance, tracing out random designs as he did so.

After a couple minutes Itachi spoke in a calm, quiet voice, as if he was talking to himself. "Red is my favorite color. If I kill you, there will be lots of red."

Every single person in the area, even Fugaku, shuddered. Shisui stood up and moved behind his clan lord. His retreat was noted by Ritsuo and her eyes filled with fear. Fugaku saw the woman's reaction and changed his stance to make it look like he was protecting the boy. Shisui smirked inwardly. Psychological attacks were very effective in the hands of a seven-year-old boy.

"Can…can you stop him?" Ritsuo was getting worried and what she meant to come out as a statement came out as a plea instead.

Itachi walked back to the woman and pointed his sword at her.

Fugaku smirked. "He wants red, he'll get red. If he gets it from you that means we can sleep without worrying about him killing us to get his fix."

"Damnit you're all insane! Raising a kid like this! What the hell is going through your mind!" Ritsuo was almost hysterical. She was pulling her tunic down to cover the blood on her thigh and holding her hand over her bleeding shoulder. Itachi watched the blood dripping onto the ground.

Finally she snapped. "I surrender! Just call that creepy kid off."

Itachi looked her in the eye again. "That means I win, and you must lend me your resources to find the boy."

"Yes! Anything!"

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Fugaku was nothing short of amazed. Itachi had quickly organized the gang members into small teams and dispersed them to the far corners of Rice country. The boy definitely had a talent for leadership despite his aloofness. Not to mention the criminals seemed to have some sort of grudging respect for the boy.

Ritsuo had taken the three ninjas to her house. It was actually an old hotel that her family had owned for several generations. Guests rarely stayed over these days so she used it as her base of operations. The three ninjas were given connecting rooms as well as warm baths and hot food.

Four days later word came back from the northern tip of the country. The boy's family had been found, but something was wrong. Apparently the boy, upon arrival, had been imprisoned and was due to be executed. The six gang members who reported the news said they were unable to find out what would cause such a thing to happen. None of the villagers seemed to know, but they were all sure he had done something bad. They also reported that rumors were flying around about peasants going missing, kidnapped in the middle of the night and never seen again.

Fugaku sighed. He did not want to get caught up in local politics. At the same time, the boy had done nothing to warrant such treatment. As a ninja of Konoha, they were duty-bound to save him.

Within a couple hours the three ninjas were packed and headed north, the six gang members went along with them to help. Really, they were hoping for an adventure. Nothing much ever happened in their territory. Protecting it from outsiders and internal disputes had rendered them into more of a police force than a gang of thugs. Of course, Ritsuo had a lot to do with that.

Ritsuo wanted to revive her families old Inn and no one would want to stay there if they were afraid to travel. And there would be no food to serve customers if the farmer's fields were ravaged by war. And there would be no shops to browse through if the merchants moved away in fear. However, her methods were considered heavy handed. She collected "protection money", a lot of it. Her thugs did actually protect those who paid, but those who couldn't pay were leaving. You can't buy seed or merchandise without money. And Ritsuo was taking too much money. And standing alone, at the edge of town, was her old hotel, sitting empty.

Such is often the way of good intentions when they are paid for with greed.

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Evening settled in around Konoha as September crept in. Tired of the long, hot summer the citizens were beginning to look forward to fall and the promise of cooler weather.

Sasuke had been tucked into his bed and was silently sleeping. Mikoto stepped out of the shower and wrapped a wide towel around her body, leaving her hair to air dry. It was still warm out and she figured it would only take an hour.

The woman had been constantly on edge since her meeting in the park with Madara, aka Tobi. She desperately wished Fugaku would return. There was no one else she could discuss this with. Her aunt and Kisa noticed her behavior and tried to get her to open up, but she refused to tell them what was bothering her. Sasuke had even had his first nightmare about a man chasing him through the bushes.

Opening her bedroom door she walked into the darkened room. The window was open and moonlight streamed onto the floor and walls. Looking at the window she saw something. No, she saw _someone_.

"Madara. Get out of my house!" All of Mikoto's pent up fury erupted as she yelled at him.

The man smirked. He looked at the woman. Fugaku's woman. His rival's mate.

She was beautiful.

He moved quickly and pushed her up against the wall. Mikoto tried to struggle, but once again she found herself weakened.

Madara moved his head closer to hers so that their lips were barely an inch apart. "You have had a couple weeks to think about it, Mikoto love. What is your answer?"

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**Next week Mikoto does something desperate and Itachi and company arrive at the young deserter's village, but will they we able to save him?**

**Please review!**


	23. Chapter 23 The Rescue

**In the last chapter Itachi and company finally find the missing boy, but he has been arrested and is due to be executed. Also, Madara makes Mikoto an offer that disturbs both her and Sasuke as she struggles with her conscious and Sasuke starts having nightmares.**

**Thanks for the reviews and the fav's, they are great!**

**Kishimoto owns everything.**

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**Chapter 23 – The Rescue**

_Madara moved his head closer to hers so that their lips were barely an inch apart. "You have had a couple weeks to think about it, Mikoto love. What is your answer?"_

Mikoto thought fast. How was she going to get out of this? Looking up into the man's eyes she wondered if she wanted to get out of it. His kisses were beyond anything she had ever experienced. One night with him wouldn't be half bad. In fact it would probably be pretty good.

'What am I thinking?' Mikoto thought in alarm.

"If I…If I let you…will you leave Itachi and Sasuke alone?" Mikoto whispered.

"Itachi is mine. You cannot have him back. Sasuke, however." He chuckled. "Sasuke is an open book. He is more powerful than Itachi, but his slow development will make them almost equal. He may not be worth the trouble. Only time will tell."

"But will you leave Sasuke alone? If I…Please leave Sasuke alone." Mikoto didn't like to plead. It made her feel weak. But she would do anything to save her children. Even if it was only one of them.

"Are you asking me to make a deal with you, Mikoto love? You should know better than that. I was unable to use Sasuke for the purpose for which he was conceived. However, the boy is not without his uses. Itachi loves his brother and would do anything to protect him. That bond is very useful to me."

"No! You can't mean you would use them for that! No! Please, Madara, don't hurt my boys!"

Madara closed the distance and kissed the woman. A few seconds later he drew back. "I won't have to do a thing. As Uchiha, the need for power is in their blood. They will eventually find their own way to fulfill that need. Whatever you or I or Fugaku do, they will walk the road prepared for them of their own free will."

"They will only do that if the road never branches. Is that your job then, to make sure they only have one choice left?" Mikoto's voice was weak as she spoke her revelation.

"Yes."

"Then why come to me?"

"Because I am still a man."

Mikoto didn't like the way the conversation was going. She felt he would get her to say "yes" somehow. But if she was going to say "yes" she wanted something out of it too, something besides a night of passion. She was first and foremost a kunoichi and a kunoichi never gave her body over to a man without material gain.

"And I am a kunoichi. I will not invite you into my bed unless I get something in return." Her voice was stronger and she looked him in the eye as she spoke.

Madara smirked, then spoke in a husky voice. "But I have already given you something. Your most precious object. Have you not guessed yet, Mikoto?"

Mikoto's mind felt like a hammer hit it. Sasuke was to have been used to contain the Kyuubi. The jutsu worked better on babies as it tended to kill older children and adults, but babies always survived for some reason. The elders insisted she have another baby. Fugaku could not have any more children. A donor had come forward with sperm. Sasuke was conceived and then born in time to be kidnapped.

"You are Sasuke's father?" Her voice was weak again.

"I am Sasuke's proud father. He is growing very well, and like I said before, he is very powerful. You are a very good mother and Itachi is a wonderful big brother. Fugaku could probably due with paying a little more attention to him, but I understand his need to dote on his eldest, I was after all in the same situation once a long time ago with my first son. But alas, he died and the clan leadership passed to Fugaku's family. However, that did bring Itachi to me." Madara spoke with a smirk on his face. Like everything was some kind of big private joke to him.

Mikoto had to admit, though, that this would give Sasuke an advantage. Perhaps he would even refuse to follow Madara's path. If he was powerful enough, that is. If Itachi loved him, surely he would help.

"Madara. I will give you this night if you leave Sasuke alone until he is an adult." Mikoto was fully aware that adulthood in their world was achieved at fifteen years of age. Still too young.

"Agreed."

The towel Mikoto had been holding around her body fell to the floor as she released it.

In the other room Sasuke woke up from another nightmare. Picking up his stuffed bear he padded to his older brother's room and climbed into his empty bed. He never had nightmares in this room because everyone knew how powerful his big brother was. Everyone always talked about it. Itachi could scare away the scary man who chased him through the forest. He could make him go away forever. Sasuke had heard his mother's voice and the scary man's voice. They sounded like they were arguing, but he didn't care. Itachi could take care of that too. Sure enough, the voices disappeared. Smiling, he went back to sleep.

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Many miles away in another country Itachi woke suddenly with a small cry of alarm and sat up. They had camped in the woods a few miles from their destination. Fugaku was standing watch while the two boys and six bandits slept.

"Itachi, are you okay?" Fugaku spoke quietly as he didn't want to wake the others. "Tell me what your nightmare was about."

Itachi was a little surprised his father knew he had another bad dream, but then most people don't wake up the way he just did. He looked down at his hands. His eyes were dark and the firelight hit his face at an angle, making the angled crease marks on his face look like the lines on an old man.

"Sasuke was being chased through the woods by…" Itachi looked up at his father once, then back down at his hands.

"By your teacher." Fugaku finished the sentence bitterly. Itachi nodded his head.

"Why would he do that?" Itachi asked. Sasuke was Madara's son. He surely would never hurt the boy.

"You tell me. It was your dream."

"But it wasn't just a dream, was it." Itachi looked his father in the eye again.

"Itachi, we had this conversation one or two years ago. The Uchiha blood line does not have precognitive abilities. Your dreams do not tell the future unless you go out of your way to make them the future. Do you intend on having…_Him_…chase Sasuke through the woods?"

"No." Itachi frowned.

"Then don't worry and go back to sleep." Fugaku stood up and walked away.

Closing his eyes he wished he was home so he could check on his brother. He remembered he used to do that when Sasuke was a baby. He could sleep after a nightmare if he went into Sasuke's nursery and laid down on the floor. But he stopped doing it after Kagura had died. Well, his nightmares pretty much stopped at that point too. Or, more accurately, they weren't as frequent. Now, however, they were coming several times a week.

Feeling very sleepy the boy closed his eyes. But sleep never came. When the sun rose over the horizon Itachi was still awake. All told, in the last two weeks, since the mission began Itachi had been averaging only about four hours of sleep per night. And now, as the boy stood up and got ready to pack up his stuff, he could feel his head buzzing. If he passed out, that would be bad. They no doubt would be fighting in a few hours.

"Father? Um…I mean My Lord?" Itachi spoke in a quiet voice so the other's wouldn't hear.

"Way ahead of you kid. Here." He handed his son a soldier pill designed to keep one awake.

"Thank-you." He bowed to his father and walked back to his bedroll to finish packing.

Fugaku watched the boy. He was worried about him. He knew the kid wasn't getting any sleep and that the doctor was also worried. Perhaps when they got back he should go in for another check-up. There had to be something Dr. Yakushi could do.

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A few hours later the small group found themselves in the middle of a small but busy town. It was market day and many people from the countryside had made the journey to purchase their weekly supplies. The population was easily doubled, maybe even tripled. People were running around, haggling with vendors, carrying packages and keeping children in line. The security forces were clearly stressed out with their increased duties as the Konoha nins easily spotted several pickpockets, shoplifters, con artists and other thieves being arrested and marched off.

It was perfect. Fugaku smiled. This should make things a lot easier.

However, a few minutes later when they approached the jail they realized that whoever was running this town still had a couple brain cells left. The gang members had reported that there were ten guards. What they saw now was thirty guards. So that is why the security forces in the market were so stressed. There numbers were cut down on market days to prevent rescuers from taking advantage of the confusion to raid the jail.

"Why are the town leaders so interested in a bunch of two-bit criminals?" Shisui spoke what was on everyone's mind.

One of Ritsuo's men answered. "Everyone arrested in this town is executed. And most are never charged with a crime, or even know why they are arrested."

"Everyone?" Itachi was shocked. He had seen three children near his age crying loudly as they were chained together in the market by a guard. They looked like beggars as they wore tattered clothes and no shoes.

"Everyone." The man answered. He frowned at Itachi's shock. "You and Stone and Cloud come in here and use us your battleground, toppling our government, and then you act shocked when something like this happens? Maybe you should pull your self-righteous heads out of your butts and clean up your messes instead of ignoring them. That boy you are looking for is only in trouble because the leader of the town, when faced with massive crime and no government saw execution as the only alternative."

Fugaku gave the man a dirty look. "That is a very simplistic and naïve view of the world. These people are being executed for petty crimes and there is no justification for that. Passing the blame does not change the crime or the sentence when both are determined by a madman."

"A difference of opinion. Let's just get the boy and get out of here. The longer we stay here the greater the chances our heads will be next on the chopping block."

"My Lord?" Itachi spoke hesitantly. "I would like to..."

"Itachi we are not here to get involved in local politics." Fugaku spoke

"But…" Itachi started to argue but Shisui pulled him to the side, afraid Fugaku would get mad and hit his son. Itachi gave his cousin a dirty look and stayed silent. He wanted to see what the leader of the town was like. If he was like Ritsuo he could easily kill him.

"Itachi." Fugaku's voice was stern. "If I were to die right now, who would be in charge of the clan until my heir turns fifteen?"

"The elders."

"Would their policies be any different?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because…because you and the council discuss things before making policy."

"Exactly. Killing the man who is doing this would, at best, delay execution for a few days. But people are rarely able to act alone. There are always followers standing behind them."

"Oh." Itachi's face fell and he thought again about the kids he saw in the market.

The boy looked up at his father. "So we would have to kill the entire council?"

Fugaku closed his eyes and hung his head. "Itachi, I think you are missing the point."

"No my Lord. I understand. And since this is mine and Shisui's mission I have decided to expand the radius of the terms."

'Radius of the terms?' Fugaku thought to himself. 'Where did he hear that phrase from?'

"Shisui?" Fugaku question the older boy.

Shisui smirked. Itachi always found a way to surprise him. "Yeah, I'm with Itachi. Anyway, if we attack the council, no doubt these guards will withdraw to defend them, leaving the jail partially or completely unguarded."

"Exactly." Itachi answered.

Fugaku smiled. "Alright, then. It's your call." He really wanted to tell the two boys to forget it, but he realized that perhaps a real life lesson in humiliation would work better.

Ritsuo's men were very happy about Itachi's decision. They really didn't understand much about politics, being simple henchmen who usually strong-armed thieves or intimidated merchants into paying protection money. Two of the six men didn't even know how to read. Fugaku's explanation sounded like an excuse and Itachi's argument sounded like action.

"So we stay here and free the prisoners while you attack the council? Is that the plan?" One of Ritsuo's men guessed.

"Ultimately, yes. But first we need to scout out the situation and arrange for the council to be in one or two places." Itachi answered.

Again Itachi astounded his father as he arranged them in groups and sent them off on recognizance with orders to report back in one hour. He left two of the bandits to watch the jail, then split the rest of the group up to check out various parts of the business district.

One hour later they all assembled back at the jail. Fugaku was a few minutes late, and he was uncharacteristically happy.

"Itachi, Shisui, the man running this town is a missing nin from Cloud. The Konoha bingo book gives him the third highest bounty. Killing this man will be quite a coup for our clan. I will take him myself, since he is far above your level."

The boys and the bandits smiled. Itachi had been a little worried about his father's reluctance to follow his plan, but that worry faded away quickly.

Shisui spoke up. "My team discovered that the full council will meet at 5pm in their chambers in the government building."

"Great. They will all be together. We found a place that sells explosives if the exploding tags we have with us aren't enough."

Fugaku smirked. "When the council meets I will enter the room and pull the target out of the building. You guys can take care of the rest of the details."

At that moment there was a commotion in front of the jail. Turning around to look they saw a woman in shabby clothes on the ground begging the guards for something. Her wails grew louder and they could hear that she was actually begging for her children to be released.

The guard's laughed at her. "Tell you what you filthy woman. Come with me and my pals into those bushes over there for a few minutes and we'll let them go."

"You…you promise?" The poor woman sobbed.

"Yeah. Sure." They dragged her to the other side of the building.

Itachi and Shisui looked up at the men curiously silently asking for an explanation.

A few minutes later the guards and woman returned and the children were released, mother and children sobbing as they walked away from the jail.

Fugaku gulped and the six bandits looked uncomfortable as the two boys continued to stare at them. This was not something he wanted to explain to a seven and nine year old. Wait, was Shisui ten now? It didn't matter. Things like this usually weren't introduced to young ninja's until they were eleven.

The silence grew uncomfortable and Fugaku knew he would have to say something. Anything.

"Boys…" He cleared his throat and started again. "Boys, sometimes parents have to do things to save their children that they wouldn't do at any other time in their lives."

"So our mother's would do that…for us?" Shisui seemed to have some inkling of what was going on, but he was still confused over the particulars.

"I know your mothers and if it would save your lives neither would think twice about it." Fugaku voice was sad. What kind of a world would make a woman give her body like that to save her children? Of course, he conveniently forgot that his use of the brothels in the many border towns pretty much constituted the same thing.

Itachi still didn't know what was going on though. "What were they doing in the bushes though?"

"Sex." Fugaku decided a straight-forward answer might work.

"But…they aren't married are they?" Fugaku cringed at his son's answer.

"We'll talk about it when we get home, okay?"

"Okay." He paused for a couple minutes and watched the guards laughing. "Well, we need to enter the council's meeting room to determine if we can blow it up with our tags or if we need to buy more explosives. Shisui and I can do that. We'll be back in two hours. You guys can stay here."

"Sounds good." Fugaku sat down on the ground and stretched out against a tree as the two boys walked away.

"You're going to have fun explaining that to a seven-year-old." One of the bandits stated.

"Well, with any luck he'll forget about it and I can put off explaining it for a few years."

"You think so?"

Fugaku sighed. "No. But if he's kept busy maybe he won't have time to ask for a while and I can think up a way to explain it. Maybe his mother can do it instead."

"Ah yes, I find passing stuff onto my wife to be a good way to get out of sticky situations. Of course she always finds a way to get back at me for it." The man frowned.

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Five-o-clock found the three Konoha ninja's standing outside the government building. They had watched as all of the council members and their leader entered the building. Fugaku chuckled lightly.

"I'm going in now. Don't blow up the building until I get out." He joked with the two boys.

Itachi didn't get it. "We won't my Lord! We would never do that!"

Fugaku snickered as he heard Shisui hit the boy upside the head. "He's joking dimwit."

"Oh. I… knew that."

Ten minutes later Fugaku and his "target" walked out of the building like they were going for a stroll. Walking a ways down the street they promptly started to fight. The clan lord was sticking to Tai Jutsu until the building exploded, then he planned on using his Sharingan to quickly end the fight.

Itachi and Shisui got into position and quickly made the signs to set off the exploding tags. Luckily they had the right amount without having to purchase additional explosives. The building rumbled then exploded in a burst of fire that quickly took out the second floor. Noticing that the first floor was still free of flames both boys used their clan's fireball jutsu to set it on fire.

Screams of terror and pain could be heard from inside the building. Shisui cringed at the horrible sounds, but Itachi's eyes widened in excitement and he smiled.

"We got them all! Now the guards should be coming any second now." Itachi turned to watch his father.

Fugaku and his "target", Toshiki Kitao, were fighting fiercely. His Sharingan was activated and every move Toshiki made was quickly copied. The boys noticed that while Toshiki was bleeding from his mouth, nose, and both arms Fugaku didn't appear to have a single scratch.

Toshiki used a cloud jutsu to cover the area in a dense fog. The Uchiha couldn't possibly copy his jutsu if he couldn't see him.

Itachi and Shisui quickly left the area and headed back to the jail. They knew that if they stuck around in those conditions they would quickly become a liability.

Fugaku snickered. What the cloud-nin didn't realize was that his Sharingan could see chakra. Jumping forward he kicked the man in the chest, knocking him down. Toshiki quickly stood up and jumped back, then rushed forward to attack, doubling the thickness of his fog as he did so.

The Konoha-nin could still see clearly. Pulling out his sword he held it up and watched as the Cloud-nin ran into it, decapitating himself in the process. Laughing he picked up the head and held it up to let the blood drain out of it. After five minutes he pulled a plastic bag out of his pack and wrapped and sealed the head with a special tag that would prevent, or rather, postpone decomposition for a few days.

Itachi and Shisui arrived at the jail and found nothing but chaos. Many of the guards had passed them, heading the opposite direction to the smoldering government building so there weren't many left at the jail. However, the five that were there were causing the six gang members a lot of trouble.

Itachi took over fighting with one of the guards and Shisui activated his Sharingan and took over the fight with a different guard. Both boys were fighting men twice their size and making progress. The six gang members quickly split up to fight the three remaining guards two-on-one.

Itachi glanced over at the jail and saw that the door had been broken down and the prisoners were quickly helping each other escape into the woods. Except for one boy who stood watching.

Itachi recognized him as their missing ninja and yelled at him. "Get the civilians out of the way! We'll find you later!"

The boy yelled back. "Do you need help?" Several other prisoners had gathered behind him and looked like they would enjoy ripping off a few heads.

"No, we're fine. Just get the others out of the way." Itachi continued to fight and when he looked over at the jail again a couple minutes later the boy was gone, but the men were still standing there. No doubt ready to step in if they failed. Well, that was okay. Ritsuo's men might need help.

Shisui was using his Sharingan to anticipate his opponent's moves. For a civilian the man was excellent at Tai Jutsu. He wasn't even using chakra. Shisui looked over at Ritsuo's men and noticed they were getting tired. They had taken down one man and were now fighting three-on-one.

Both boys decided to end their fights. Simultaneously pulling out their swords they swiped their opponents across their stomachs, then stabbed them in the heart when they collapsed.

"We surrender!" The two remaining guards dropped to their knees. The sight of the two boys working in unison, almost as if it was choreographed, scared them.

"Surrender refused." One of the prisoners walked over, picked up a sword he found on the ground and quickly decapitated the prostrate men.

Fugaku walked into the jail yard a minute later. "I see everything is going okay here. Where did the boy go?"

Itachi looked back at the woods. "I told him to get the civilians away."

"Then I guess we are done here. Let's collect the boy and go home." Fugaku started walking toward the woods.

Ritsuo's men hung back. "We will make our own way back. So I guess this is farewell."

Fugaku stopped walking and turned around. "We thank you for your help."

Itachi and Shisui also gave their regards and the three Konoha ninja's walked into the woods, following the trail of the missing ninja.

About thirty minutes later the boy and two men stepped in front of them.

Kii Tachiki fell to his knees and prostrated himself in front of the Konoha ninjas, as did the two men with him.

"Please forgive me for running away, and accept my eternal thanks for rescuing my family from the prison, although I myself did not deserve to be rescued." Kii spoke clearly, but there was a lot of emotion in his voice.

One of the men spoke up. "Please forgive my nephew. He was not thinking clearly when he heard of our predicament and he was only thinking of rescuing us when he ran away."

Itachi was a little surprised. So the boy didn't run away because he was scared, he ran away to help his family.

"Please stand up. You won't get into a lot of trouble, probably a few weeks in jail." Itachi spoke quietly.

"Didn't you tell anyone about what was happening?" Shisui was surprised by this turn of events as well.

The boy and two men stood up, but kept their eyes on the ground in respect. "I told my sensei, but he told me it was none of his concern. He said Rice country was a bunch of ignorant peasants and he didn't care what happened to them. And he said that if they all died the world would be a better place. I ran away because if that is what my adopted country thinks then I didn't want anything to do with it."

Fugaku was dumbstruck. He had spoken to the boy's sensei and actually thought he was an idiot, but this was surprising.

"That is _not_ what Konoha thinks of the Rice country. Or any country for that matter. If what you say is the truth there may be extenuating circumstances to deal with. In either case it is up to the Hokage."

The same man who spoke before answered. "Then I shall accompany Kii back to Konoha as his guardian."

"That is up to you. What is your name? Are you a relative?" Fugaku looked at Itachi and Shisui and could see that the boys were concentrating closely on what was going on.

"I am the boy's uncle, Ei Tachiki and this is his cousin Engo Tachiki."

"Well then Ei, we will leave in the morning. Kii, if you agree to come willingly you will not be restrained." Fugaku knew the boy would not run away again, but he wanted to make sure.

"I agree to cooperate." Kii smiled, relief evident on his face. "May I ask what your names are? If it's isn't an indisposition that is."

Itachi spoke up. "We are Uchiha. I am Itachi, this is Shisui and Lord Fugaku."

Kii looked up, shock on his face. "Lord Itachi! Lord Shisui! Lord Fugaku!"

Shisui opened his mouth to correct Kii, then remembered that his title as a member of the main branch (albeit for only the last couple years) was "Lord". It still sounded odd to him and he frowned. He noticed that Fugaku did not correct Kii so obviously they would be on formal terms during the trip back. He hated formalities.

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Sasuke was sitting on the porch playing noisily with his blocks and a couple toy horses. Mikoto was keeping an eye on him from a few feet away. Even though Madara had promised to leave him alone, she still worried. The boy was also having frequent nightmares and was only able to sleep if he was in Itachi's room.

She had received word from Toshiro that Fugaku and the boys would be back today. She wanted her husband back so much that waiting for him was making her sick. When she finally saw him walking up to the house she picked up Sasuke and walked to the steps to greet him.

Fugaku and Itachi stood at the bottom of the stairs and stared at Mikoto. She had dark circles under her eyes and her face was covered in tears. Sasuke sensed his mother's distress and his face was scrunching up like he was going to cry.

Itachi moved forward and took his little brother in his arms to help his mother. As soon as he did the boy grabbed tightly onto his shirt, wrapped his legs around Itachi's torso and buried his head in his chest. Then he started wailing. A loud long cry that alarmed Itachi so badly he nearly dropped the boy. He quickly looked up to his mother to see what he should do, but she was no longer standing next to him.

Instead, Mikoto was clinging to Fugaku's shirt crying. He wrapped his arms around her, shooting Itachi an alarmed look. Something was very wrong.

"Fugaku!" She spoke in between the sobs. "I had to do it. He…he…said he…would leave Sasuke alone if I did…I got him to promise…but…"

Itachi's face drained of color and Fugaku realized not only what his wife had done, but that Itachi now understood what the woman back in Rice country had sacrificed for her children.

Mikoto continued to cry and speak at the same time. "But…he refused to give up on Itachi. Fugaku… I want both my sons to be safe…not just one. And.. and Sasuke is having nightmares. What are we going to do?"

Itachi tried to remove Sasuke from his body, but the child refused to let go. He gave up, deciding to bring him. He walked back down the stairs and away from the house.

"Itachi, where are you going?" Fugaku yelled over at his son as he quickly walked away.

Itachi didn't answer. He looked at his father and in his eyes was such a look of hatred that Fugaku quickly looked down at Mikoto to make sure she hadn't seen.

"Itachi. Don't do anything stupid." He yelled to the boy again.

Walking out of the village with a toddler crying at the top of his lungs was not an easy thing to do. People kept stopping him. Finally Itachi ran the remaining distance, exiting the front gate without signing the log book. Continuing to run he made his way into the woods.

Concentrating on his bracelet he called Madara. The man answered right away.

"Itachi. What is it you want?" The man's voice was deep and business-like.

"I want an explanation as to why _my_ brother was used as a bargaining chip for you to have sex with my mother." Madara could sense his student's anger.

"Wait fifteen minutes and I will join you at your location." Madara cut the communication.

Itachi stroked his brothers back absent-mindedly as he waited. Then he realized that Madara was the reason Sasuke was crying. If he came the toddler would be scared all over again. He silently cursed himself for not telling the man to stay away.

"Having problems, Itachi?" Madara appeared out of thin air.

"Yeah. You." Itachi's ears nearly fell off when Sasuke screeched again at the sight of the man who chased him in his nightmares. He wrapped his arms tightly around his brother.

Madara smiled in satisfaction at the sight of the two brothers seeking comfort in each other.

"I agreed to leave Sasuke alone until he is an adult. You are already my student and I will not give up my favorite pupil. I have a lot to teach you, and you will learn it."

"What about Shisui?" Itachi was having to yell in order to be heard over Sasuke's crying.

Madara reached over to Sasuke, but Itachi stepped back. "Hold still, Itachi." The man's voice carried something else in it that made Itachi stop moving. Or maybe it was the strange looking eye peeping out from behind the orange mask. It didn't look like a Sharingan. Touching Sasuke, the boy quickly stopped crying, then a moment later fell asleep. He then knelt down beside Itachi and with both hands stroked both boys' heads.

"Shisui is your best friend. That makes him immensely important. For no other reason than because he _is_ your best friend." Madara stood up again and moved a couple feet away.

"But my mother! How could you? And Sasuke! He's your son, and now he is afraid of you!"

"Itachi, you are too young to understand, but a man needs certain _things_ sometimes. And for me, that thing is Mikoto." He laughed lightly at the boy's look of disgust.

"As for Sasuke, you are such a good big brother, I'm sure you will soothe his nightmares and in a couple months he won't remember a thing about me."

Itachi adjusted the two-year-old in his arms. He sure was heavy when he was sleeping.

"I…I trusted you…Even when father told me all those bad things…Even when all those people died when you attacked…What now?" Itachi felt near tears himself.

"Do you want power? Do you someday want the Mangekyou Sharingan? Do you someday want to stand before the Uchiha clan as a clan leader that will help return them to their rightful glory?" Madara's voice was powerful and a little intimidating.

Itachi whispered, suddenly feeling very small. "Yes. But only if my brother is safe. And you leave my mother alone."

Madara was struck with the irony of the boy's words. First his mother tries to strike a deal with him, then the son tries the same thing.

"I will not touch Sasuke until he is an adult. At that point, Sasuke may make his own decisions. You must guide him along the path that you think is right. As for Mikoto. Like I said before, you are too young to understand. I enjoyed myself too much to leave that little treat alone."

Itachi couldn't believe what he was hearing. But Madara was right. He didn't understand. He knew what had happened, but he didn't understand it. Looking at the ground he felt the tears well up in his eyes. Sitting down he laid Sasuke gently on the ground and watched him sleeping. He wondered how long it would be before he woke up screaming from another nightmare. For that matter, how long would it be before he himself woke up from a nightmare. Assuming he could even fall asleep again.

The boy buried his head in his knees and started crying. He felt so helpless. This was all his fault. He had agreed to train with the man three years ago when he was four. He should have known this would happen. He caused his mother and father and brother to suffer.

Madara was a little dumbstruck by the boy's breakdown. It was the last thing he expected to see him do. This was not good. If he lost the boy then his plans would be ruined. And the boy had to be willing, he could not be forced. He remembered that Itachi had several mental problems as well as a genius mind, insomnia and frequent nightmares. Not to mention being subject to abuse from his father and neglect form his mother when he was a baby. Also pressure from the elder council to always succeed and perform beyond his years.

The boy was a volcano waiting to blow. Madara berated himself for not noticing before. So. That was what Fugaku was afraid of. Well, his fear was obviously justified. When someone as powerful as Itachi finally blew up, what would happen?

Ten minutes later the boy was still crying. The masked man sat down beside him and wrapped his arm around the boy. He would just wait it out. At this point he doubted the tears were coming because of just what he had done, but for a variety of reason that were finally surfacing after being repressed for so long. He actually felt sorry for the young boy.

He also felt a little put out. The boy would have to be handled much more delicately than he had first thought. That would be a lot of trouble. But the results would be more than worth it.

Slowly, Itachi finally fell asleep, leaning up against Madara's side. He carefully reached over and picked up Sasuke so he wasn't laying on the ground as the sun set and the dew appeared.

Thirty minutes after the sun set Fugaku found the trio.

"You didn't disappear?" Fugaku's voice carried amusement but his face was expressionless.

"I see what you mean about Itachi. He has…a few problems." Madara looked down at the tear-streaked face of the boy.

"Did he start crying again?" Fugaku frowned in displeasure.

"He is unstable."

"I have known that for years."

"Why are you here? Surely not to collect your wayward sons?"

"Yes. Mikoto is worried. Understandable, given the circumstances." Fugaku stepped forward and picked up Sasuke, being careful not to wake him.

"I will hold to my promise. I will not touch Sasuke until he is an adult."

"And then?"

"Hmm… hard to say. Let's wait thirteen years and ask him."

"And Itachi?" Fugaku knelt down and ran his hand through his son's hair.

"He is mine." Madara's voice indicated that there would be no more discussion.

Itachi opened his eyes, wiping them with his sleeve. Madara stood up, picking the boy up as he did so, then putting him down on his feet. The boy stumbled a little bit, still half asleep.

"Father?" His voice was horse.

"Itachi. It's okay. We'll go home now."

"But he won't leave mother alone."

"Let your mother deal with that. This is an issue for adults, son. Madara and Mikoto can work things out on their own." Fugaku's voice was actually almost tender.

"But…but…Mother…I can't let her cry again."

Fugaku sighed and Madara smiled in amusement. "Mikoto is a kunoichi. There are certain aspects of that job that you have not been informed of yet. One of them includes certain _relations_ with men. She did several missions of that sort before she married me, and one or two after. It's part of her job."

Itachi was now very, very confused. Shouldn't his father be jealous? Like in the Samurai movies his mother always watched?

They walked back to the village slowly. Itachi was still very sleepy and seemed to be extremely exhausted for some reason. Well, actually, the reason wasn't that hard to figure out when he remembered all the soldier pills he had been shoving down the boys throat to make up for the insomnia. Still, if he had to carry both boys back it would probably wake up Sasuke.

Itachi bumped into his father and then fell down. His tears started up again as the boy began crying rather loudly. Fugaku nearly panicked. This was not good. Was the boy having a nervous breakdown? Did seven-year-old children have nervous breakdowns? It didn't matter. He was going to the hospital. Now.

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Mikoto stood over Sasuke's sleeping body as she thought about Fugaku. He had been very upset when had had finally come home. He had dropped Itachi off at the hospital, came straight home to drop off Sasuke, then returned to the hospital. That had been several hours ago. It was now 2am.

"It's all my fault. I shouldn't have cried in front of him like that." She kept saying the same thing over and over. Fugaku had spelled things out for her after Itachi had run off. She was a kunoichi and if she had to do "that" to protect her children then she was doing nothing more than her duty.

But her frustration wasn't because of what she had done, but because she could only make a deal for Sasuke. Madara would not back away from Itachi. Fugaku told her that Itachi was his concern and he would do his best to protect him. But then he said something that chilled her to the bone.

"_Itachi is a ninja, and heir to clan leadership. He is also the best chance we have to kill that man. To kill Madara. He will probably die in the process. Sasuke will then become the clan lord."_

So he was being trained for one mission. The mission that would rid the clan of the man that had menaced them for three generations. The mission that would result in his early death.

Yet, despite those words, when Fugaku returned from the hospital he was very worried about his son. She felt sorry for Fugaku. More than he would ever know.

"Fugaku, when the time comes, can you truly sacrifice your own son? The only person you have ever loved?"

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**Please review.**

**Next week, Itachi is given several psychological exams, the results of which put into question his continued existence as a shinobi. **


	24. Chapter 24 Dr Motoi

**Last week Itachi and Shisui's first clan mission ended in success, but when they returned Itachi was witness to a disturbing revelation by his mother. Running away he is found by Madara who quickly makes things worse. Itachi then breaks down and is unable to stop crying, forcing Fugaku to have the boy admitted into the hospital.**

**Thanks for all the reviews! They are so great! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Masashi Kishimoto, he is owned by Naruto Uzumaki. **

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**Chapter 24 – Dr. Motoi**

The utmost in discretion was used concerning all issues with Itachi's hospitalization. Fugaku did not want anyone to think that his heir was in the hospital with a possible nervous breakdown. Dr. Yakushi had been very understanding and arranged a private room with a minimum of staff. He said he was used to handling clan affairs for all of the Konoha families and Fugaku's request was not unusual.

Itachi was handed over to the doctor who picked the small boy up and carried him to his room. At this point Itachi was both shivering and crying. Laying him down in his room the nurse quickly replaced his clothes with pajamas and wrapped an electric blanket around him. The doctor gave him a small dose of a tranquilizer and by the time Fugaku had returned from dropping off Sasuke, Itachi was sleeping.

"Can you tell me what set this off?" Dr. Yakushi asked quietly.

"No." Fugaku also spoke quietly.

"I understand the need to keep clan secrets, but some event had to have set this off. I need to set up a round of therapy to help him deal with it. He has had a huge shock to his mind and no matter how much of a genius he is or you think he is, he is ultimately a seven-year-old boy."

"I understand that doctor." Fugaku said, trying to hold back his anger. "But some things I cannot speak of. When he has had enough sleep I can talk to him and find out exactly what about the event bothered him."

"So you don't know?"

"I know what happened, but Itachi ran off when he found out about it and spoke to a third party. He then broke down. I believe that person he spoke to said something to set this off. I don't want anyone else to know but me. Then I can assure him that I will take care of it."

"Hmm. I see."

"He also has only been getting about four hours of sleep every night for the last two weeks on our mission. To keep him from falling asleep during the day I was giving him soldier pills."

"How many?"

"On eight different days I gave him one pill in the morning."

"It should have been okay, then. However, insomnia is hard to diagnose, and would definitely diminish clarity of thought. As you know, lack of sleep can cause delusions, paranoia, and increase the chances of becoming ill. This could all have just been a side effect of his lack of sleep and not a break down at all. Just a good old fashioned temper tantrum caused by extreme lack of sleep if you want to oversimplify it."

"Can you take a look at it then? He also has frequent nightmares, which you know about already."

"Yes, I spoke to you about my concerns a month ago. I will keep him for a few days. First I want the soldier pills to work their way out of his system. Then I will have our sleep specialist run some tests on him. I assure you that everything will be handled discreetly."

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Itachi was sitting up in bed reading a book when his father entered the room the next morning. His cheeks blushed red as he closed the book and looked down at the blanket.

"Father. I apologize for my behavior last night. It was inexcusable." He bowed forward a few inches in apology.

"Itachi. We are alone in here. Tell me what Madara said that upset you so much." Fugaku was all business. Though he was pleased that his son was embarrassed by his actions. It at least showed that he would not make a habit of such outbursts.

"He…he…" Itachi went silent and closed his eyes. "He said he wanted mother again. He said 'I enjoyed myself too much to leave that little treat alone.'"

Fugaku straightened in shock, his right hand clenching into a tight fist.

"It's all my fault father! He wanted me and I kept going to him! Now mother is going to be hurt!" Itachi's voice grew louder as he spoke.

That man. Mikoto gave herself to save her sons and only saved one. But it wasn't enough for him. He had already broken the deal! It was inexcusable. An Uchiha's word was supposed to mean something. Mikoto had believed him. She had every reason to believe him. She wanted to believe him. How was he going to tell her? Yet he had to warn her that Madara would be back.

"Itachi, it was absolutely in no way your fault. You were tricked. You trusted him and he used you. Just as he uses everyone."

"But…"

"You are also too young to completely understand everything that is going on here. I know you don't like to hear that, but just this once take me at my word. I will deal with your mother, and do what I can to protect her. I won't lie to you, it appears he has already broken the deal he made with her. She will be devastated when she finds out she was used like that."

"Okay." It was all the boy could think of saying.

"Have you spoken to Dr. Yakushi yet?"

"No. Just the nurse."

"Hmm. Well, he is going to have a sleep specialist run some tests on you to find out what we can do about your insomnia. Dr. Yakushi thinks lack of sleep made your mind vulnerable and caused you to overreact. Although, I must say, what you told me is pretty heavy."

"Yes father."

"And Itachi, it goes without saying that you must be very careful what you say around these people. Do not speak of clan affairs, do not answer questions about your family, and absolutely do not mention Madara to anyone. Disclosure could put many of your cousins in danger and expose weaknesses. The clan could become very angry with you. Remember your clan loyalties."

"Yes father. I will always remember."

"That is good. The psychologists here are experts at extracting information and if you aren't careful they can have you revealing things without you even being aware of it. Almost like interrogators. Actually, exactly like interrogators as the best always make a study of psychology."

"Yes father." Itachi was beginning to feel uncomfortable. His father's lecture, while repeated to him several times a year (at least once a month it seemed like) was nonetheless intimidating. Incurring the wrath of his cousins was not a happy thought. They may not beat him physically, but the thought of them not talking to him or even banishing him was scary. How could he live without his family? How did people not in clans manage to survive? It sounded like a bleak existence.

"If a Dr. Motoi sees you, do not speak a single word to him. At all. He is very anti-clan and has tried twice in the last year to remove two Hyuuga children from their parents claiming they were being brainwashed with clan ideology. Hiashi Hyuuga and I are in the process of trying to get him fired, but even that is up to the Hokage. Dr. Motoi has many powerful associates in the capital. He is also a little bitter because he was unable to get his hands on Yota while he was here. Luckily the boy was so upset over his parents that Motoi wasn't able to make a case to remove him from the custody from the Hyuuga clan."

"I won't speak to him, father. But, I thought Yota lived on his own?"

"You know by now that is not possible. Hiashi's brother Hizashi is technically the boy's guardian, even though Yota lives with Dr. Yakushi."

"Oh. That explains why they train together so much, I guess. Well that's good anyway. I think Yota looks up to him a lot."

Fugaku gave a small smile. Motoi had been closer than he realized to breaching the inner secrets of the Hyuuga clan when he let Yota slip through his fingers. Dr. Yakushi had truly proved his worth when it came to discretion on _that_ case.

"I am going to leave now, but I will be back later to check on what tests are going to be run. I do not know about Mikoto. I will have to tell her what you said, and, well, you saw her yesterday when we came back." He stood up and walked to the door.

"Father. Tell her I am fine and she should not worry about me. I am a ninja and I will behave like one." Itachi was serious and stared at his father with what appeared to be a resolute expression.

"I will tell her, son."

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Fugaku watched as Kisa carried Sasuke away for sleep-over at her house. He had decided that Mikoto might need some help after she heard what Madara had told Itachi, and having Kisa babysit would give him time alone with his wife without any distractions.

Mikoto, on the other hand, didn't like seeing her youngest son leave. However, something about the expression on her husband's face told her to keep her mouth shut. He looked deadly serious about something and that worried her. She had a suspicion it had to do with Madara.

"Mikoto. I must speak with you alone." He paused, then sat next to his wife on the couch instead of opposite her on a different couch as he usually did. He could see her worried expression, the frown on her face almost made him loose his nerve.

"Please, tell me what is on your mind." Her voice was quiet and almost inaudible. Her hands were folded tightly together in her lap.

Fugaku put one arm around her, drawing her closer. She was warm. Why didn't he do this more often? "When Itachi ran off he was found immediately by Madara who then bragged to the boy about…he said…" Fugaku stopped talking. He couldn't say the words.

"Please. Tell me what he told my boy?" Her voice was even fainter than it had been a moment ago. "I want to hear it."

"He said he would be back, because you tasted good." Somehow Fugaku was able to keep his voice strong, even though he felt like falling apart.

"He…said only once and Sasuke would be safe. If he comes back… then he has broken the promise." She looked at her hands. "I wish I had never done it. I wish… Why do our lives have to be like this?" She started to tremble.

Wrapping his other arm around his wife he held her close as she clung onto his chest and cried.

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Kisa watched as Sasuke happily ate his crackers. He was such cheerful child, always looking for attention, not afraid to show his feelings. He was the complete opposite of Itachi. Yet Itachi seemed to love his brother very much. He was always picking the boy up and carrying him. A strange behavior when one considered that Itachi himself never responded when he was picked up as a baby. He would often just lie there and stare and the person holding him.

Sasuke stuffed cracker pieces in his mouth as he told Kisa about something that happened earlier, about how Itachi was going to play with him later, about how mother and father were going to have dinner. Basically, he talked a lot. But then the crackers ran out and he became very silent. For a few seconds, anyway.

Kisa blinked as she broke away from her thoughts. The boy was stuffing his face in the empty box for some reason and making "hooting" noises. Unable to stop herself she broke out laughing. Sasuke joined her a minute later when the box fell off his face.

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"Lord Fugaku, we finished running several mental tests on Itachi this morning. He is a very interesting young man."

"Interesting in what way?" Fugaku was prepared to hear the worst. It had been two days since Itachi had been hospitalized and the boy was being subjected to several mental and physical exams.

"He definitely has some mental problems, but none of his symptoms seem to fit any one classification. Part of this could be his age. It is generally a bad idea to classify young children as they are still developing." The doctor handed over some pictures that Itachi had drawn.

"Look at these. When asked to draw his family not only did he take four hours to do so, but the detail is perfect. He shows a definite obsessive-compulsive behavior, but that isn't necessarily bad. What really concerns me about this picture is the way he drew his family. You are standing here on the left, Mikoto is in the center, and Itachi is on the right with his brother in his arms. Most children will draw their families in the center of the page with the father's arm around the mother, the mother holding the infant and the other child standing between the parents. This shows that Itachi feels his household contains three different identities, and he only identifies with his brother."

Fugaku was a little taken aback. "Yeah. I see what you mean."

"He seems to have strong feelings for some people, as well as feeling guilt, empathy, and he learns from his mistakes and punishments. He doesn't challenge authority, pick fights or lie. He also does not have a superiority complex nor does he suffer from depression." The doctor looked at Fugaku confused face.

He continued talking. "He does have an obsessive-compulsive personality, he also has trouble showing emotion, preferring to wait to see what everyone else is feeling before he decides what to do. He also is able to compartmentalize his feelings so quickly and completely that he can block out all empathy and kill. Itachi is also prone to fits of uncontrolled anger, no doubt caused by repression of feelings."

"So what does all this mean?"

"Well, in one sense it means that Itachi has the making of the perfect ninja. Obedient, deadly, and capable of killing without conscious, yet able to return home and live in a family without too many problems. On the other hand, you have a boy who is unable to properly show emotion, therefore repressing it. Outbursts like the one you saw a couple days ago, or even more violent like with Yota Hyuuga a few years ago will continue to happen. And may even get worse."

"So I need to find a proper outlet for Itachi express emotion so he doesn't go crazy and kill a bunch of people?" Fugaku was a little surprised by the doctor's diagnosis. He hadn't realized the boy's problems were so varied and complex.

"Yes."

"Yeah, no problem." Fugaku answered sarcastically. "I'll get right on that."

"Fugaku, Itachi is not like your father. Neither one of us is old enough to remember much about him, I only saw him once, but I talked to a retired doctor yesterday who treated your father several times. He came and talked to Itachi for an hour and he believes that the boy is not actually a sociopath, even though he does exhibit a couple of the behaviors. Your father was almost a text-book example and when he was Itachi's age behaved very differently."

"I feel like you are contradicting yourself. Is Itachi dangerous or not?"

"He is dangerous. He is more dangerous than your father in that his outbursts are capable of much more damage, yet at the same time he is less dangerous in that he doesn't feel any desire to kill. Your clan and the Hokage knew what your father was, and therefore he was easy to predict. Itachi represses his emotions and behaviors, modifying them to fit whatever situation he is in, then blows up. It's kind of like filling up a glass with water in the dark. You don't know if it is full until it is too late and water is spilling onto your hand."

"So what should we do?"

"Find a way for him to express himself when he starts to overload. Maybe through some type of strenuous exercise or some other activity you have noticed de-stresses him. I think this is something you and Lady Mikoto would be better and figuring out since you two are with him more often."

"Okay. I'll look into that. Thanks for your work on this." Fugaku sighed. He wasn't sure he knew of any activity that would help his son.

The doctor continued talking. "Also, because of his age we cannot make a complete diagnostic. I suspect that as he grows older he will begin to show more signs of sociopathic behaviors. However, not all diagnosed sociopaths are dangerous. In fact, very few are. I will not be prescribing any medication at this stage, but keep an eye on him and if you see any new behavior let me know.

"Tonight we are going to start the sleep test. We'll strap him to a bunch of machines, put a video camera on him, then wait for him to sleep or not sleep as the case may be. Hopefully he will also have a nightmare tonight. He had three last night so I am getting a little concerned. If we can get all the data tonight, then he can go home in the morning."

"Thank-you doctor. I'll be back tomorrow then." He got up to leave, glancing back at the doctor as he closed the office door behind him. The man looked very tired, like he wasn't sleeping either. Fugaku had a passing thought about what was going on in the man's personal life, but he forgot it quick.

Entering Itachi's hospital room he saw Itachi and Sasuke sitting on the floor playing some bizarre card game that Sasuke had invented. Apparently it involved each player taking turns putting a card down in a pile. It looked pointless, but no doubt made perfect sense to the toddler. Itachi had a slight smile on his face.

Mikoto was sitting on the floor near them watching. "So how did it go?" She asked.

"Well, he said Itachi needs something to help him de-stress when he gets wound up." Fugaku smirked at the prognosis.

"Like what?" The woman frowned in confusion.

"I guess we'll have to think of something. You too, Itachi."

"Yes father. I will think hard about it." His smile disappeared and he bowed slightly to his father.

Fugaku sighed.

The door to the room opened and Dr. Yakushi walked in. "I forgot to tell you. Dr. Motoi will be here in about an hour."

The doctor and Fugaku shared a knowing look, then the doctor left the room again.

"I will not speak to him, father. I remember what you said." Itachi said quietly.

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Itachi was sitting motionless in a chair while the white-clad Dr. Motoi kept up his constant barrage of questions. The "questioning" had been going on for three hours and the boy had not moved once since he had sat down. His gaze was locked on the doctor's eyes.

The truth was, Itachi was meditating and didn't hear a single word the doctor was saying. In his mind he was sitting in his front yard next to the small pond listening to the water run through the fountain and feeling the sun shine on his face.

Dr. Motoi was getting frustrated. When he had treated the Hyuuga children they had cowered in fear, too afraid to open their mouths. One had even started crying. This boy, however, was neither speaking nor moving. It was a little creepy, to say the least.

However, he felt the boy's behavior more than vindicated his theory. That clan's were detrimental to the mental well-being of the children who lived in them and should be disbanded. The clan leaders were treated almost like gods, with the ability to give and take the lives of his followers on a whim. His followers were so afraid that they would go to dramatic lengths to keep themselves from revealing clan secrets or to protect their leader. Even seven-year-old children feared for their lives. He had made it his life's goal to have the Daimyou of Fire country disband the clans and place the children in normal homes.

Of course, the Daimyou, himself a member of a prominent civilian clan, found many holes in the doctor's arguments. The biggest one, perhaps, was Dr. Motoi's inability to give a solid definition of what a "normal home" was. In a world of ninja's where children were raised to kill from an early age the Daimyou could see no difference between what the children raised inside or outside of clans went through. Or perhaps he refused to see.

Dr. Motoi sighed and stood up. "Itachi, if you continue to act like a spoiled brat and not answer my questions I will have to take drastic measures."

The boy continued not to move. However, inside his mind he turned his attention back to the doctor.

"Do you know what happens to spoiled brats who refuse to behave?"

Itachi almost started laughing. Was the man threatening to hit him? He wondered if it would feel like a mosquito bite or a flea bite - slightly annoying and you usually didn't know you got bit until hours later. He figured that when his father and mother hit him it was more like a dog bite – it hurt right away and lasted for days.

The doctor walked over to the boy, picked him up and hit him several times on the backside. Then slammed him back down on the chair.

Itachi readjusted himself so he was sitting in exactly the same position he had been a minute ago and continued looking straight ahead. He decided that the doctor hit like a mosquito. A very small, week, half-dead mosquito. Again, he suppressed an urge to laugh. He could hardly wait to tell Shisui about this man. He imagined his parents would also get a laugh out of it as well. An image of his mother smiling and laughing suddenly made him feel very happy.

The door to the examination room flew open and Dr. Yakushi ran into the room in a rage. "What the bloody hell was that about!"

"What?" Dr. Motoi said calmly.

"Itachi, you may return to your room." Dr. Yakushi put a hand on the boy's shoulder and guided him out of the room.

Itachi hung back as the door slammed shut. Muffled voices could be heard through the thin walls.

"How dare you hit a patient! We have enough problems as it is getting people to bring their children in without you doing something stupid like that!"

"Who are you to question my methods? I was merely treating the boy, trying to bring him out of his closed off mind."

"I will be reporting this to the board of trustees. I suggest you think up a better excuse than the one you just gave me." Dr. Yakushi opened the door up to leave and Itachi quickly ducked into a nearby bathroom, coming out after he heard the exam room close.

The doctor saw the boy and fell into step with him as he headed back to his room. Once inside the doctor asked Itachi if he hurt, then laughed when the boy told him about his mosquito hyperbole. However, he didn't completely believe it. The room had a video camera set up and Dr. Yakushi had seen everything. Dr. Motoi had been hitting the boy so hard his hand was red. If he had thought that was light, then what was going on at home? What were his parents doing to him? He also noticed that the boy made no move to sit down. Of course that could just be nothing more than a reaction to having sat motionless for three hours straight.

"Itachi, I'm sorry, but I need to see so I can tell the trustees. Come here." Itachi's cheeks turned red and he walked over to the doctor. Dr. Yakushi pulled down the boy's pants a couple inches and saw a very red rear end.

"It's not that bad, doctor." Itachi said in a small voice as he moved back to where he had been standing a minute ago.

"Itachi, it is very bad. Please accept my apologies. If I would have had even a suspicion that Dr. Motoi would hurt you I would never have allowed him to see you. I feel really bad about this."

"I accept your apology. I know you wouldn't have allowed it. But sometimes we just don't know what's going to happen next."

Dr. Yakushi smiled. "I'll tell the nurse to bring you some ice cream. Okay?"

Itachi smiled. "Okay!"

The doctor dreaded telling Fugaku about this. However…this could be used as argument to get rid of Dr. Motoi. That would please Fugaku and Hiashi to no end. Not to mention making the rest of the hospital staff breathe a huge sigh of relief. He returned to his office so he could write up a report for the trustees and send a note to Fugaku about the incident recommending he press assault charges against Motoi.

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Dr. Yakushi walked into his office the next morning expecting that the only thing he would have on his desk was the sleep study report done the previous evening on Itachi, and a summary report of the previous evening's hospital admissions. He was therefore surprised when he saw an official scroll from the Hokage.

Opening the scroll he read it with increasing anger. Dr. Motoi had gone to the Hokage with Itachi's secret file (meaning he had broken in to his office and stolen it). He and Fugaku were being requested to appear at a juvenile custody hearing today at 10am concerning Itachi. Dr. Yakushi looked at the clock on the wall and saw he had forty-five minutes.

Quickly opening the folder about the sleep study Dr. Yakushi started cursing. The tests were very negative. The boy had been unable to get more than two hours of sleep the entire night, and he had not achieved the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) stage of sleep. Meaning he did not have any dreams. There were three stages of sleep. Stage one and stage two were preparation for stage three (REM) sleep. If stage three was not reached, then any sleep he got in the other two stages was almost useless. People who were deprived of REM sleep would go insane very quickly. The doctor conducting the study requested a full series of tests. That would take five nights. Perhaps longer. And in his closing notes he recommended that Itachi not be released until the study was completed as the doctor had never seen any one that young show this type of behavior.

Standing up, the doctor left his office in a bad mood and headed for the Hokage building.

Fugaku and three of the Uchiha elders were already there when Dr. Yakushi walked into the office. The ANBU, who were there to maintain security were sweating bullets. The four Uchiha's were radiating such killing intent that the only ones who seemed unaffected were the Hokage, and for some reason Dr. Motoi.

Dr. Yakushi bowed his head as he approached the clan lord. "I apologize. I…it appears Motoi broke into my office, despite the seals I had placed there. There is no excuse for it."

"It is not your fault. Motoi will pay for this, be assured of that." Fugaku looked at the doctor. He had received word to attend the hearing as he was starting his day at the police station. He instantly knew it was Motoi's doing. The man was dangerous.

The Hokage cleared his throat and called the room to order. "I intend on making this hearing short as I have other things to do today, as do you all as well. After reviewing Lord Itachi Uchiha's medical file's, both the secret ones kept by the late Lady Kagura Uchiha, and the files maintained by Dr. Yakushi I have come to the conclusion that the boy will be paced on disability from his Genin position pending review after he receives six months of psychiatric treatment. Also, due to numerous instances of severe injuries due to child abuse at the hands of Lord Fugaku Uchiha as well as second hand information indicating Lady Mikoto Uchiha also contributed to several unreported injuries, Lord Itachi Uchiha will be placed in foster care at an undisclosed location. He will have no contact with any Uchiha. Lord Itachi Uchiha has already been removed from the hospital and placed in a safe house. Any contact made with him will result in the offending person being imprisoned.

"I have sent my ANBU to take Sasuke Uchiha into custody as it appears he may also be in danger. Lord Shisui Uchiha's Sensei is being informed as we speak that he is to cancel his current mission and return the boy to Konoha so he may also be placed in protective custody."

The Hokage looked over the room and noted that no one was objecting. He smiled inwardly. He knew that Fugaku would not allow these actions. However, the preponderance of evidence was very damaging. This was his only alternative until he could investigate the matter himself. He just hoped no one did anything stupid. Or he should say "too" stupid.

"I am, as of this moment, opening an official investigation into the matter. You will receive periodic updates. That is all. You may leave." The Hokage stood up and left the room through a side door.

Dr. Motoi left the room quickly, almost running. He obviously wanted to avoid a confrontation.

Dr. Yakushi looked at Fugaku and opened his mouth to protest, but was stopped by Fugaku. "Do not do anything. Do not say anything. The clan will handle this. And do not feel you are responsible. If this man was able to get Kagura's files then we are dealing with someone who is clearly out of your league. There was nothing you could have done to prevent it."

"Then I shall return to my duties at the hospital." The doctor bowed once and left.

Fugaku chuckled darkly, as did the three elders. They could hardly wait to get back to the clan compound to see what chaos Mikoto was unleashing on the poor ANBU. As for Shisui, well his team was fiercely loyal to one another. There really were only two alternatives as far as that was concerned. Either the order to return would be "lost" or Shisui would be told to take off and hide.

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Mikoto stood looking at the three ANBU as if they had all grown second heads. As soon as they had entered the compound several clansmen had noticed them and left their homes to follow. Therefore, by the time the ANBU had read their order to take Sasuke into protective custody there were forty people standing behind them, all radiating strong killing intent.

Toshiro and Kisa walked up and Mikoto handed Sasuke over to Kisa.

"If you are still standing at the end of five minutes, you may take the boy." Mikoto addressed the ANBU, then removed her apron and walked down the porch stairs and into the yard. Getting into position she watched as the first ANBU approached her, taking up the challenge.

Before the man in the cat mask could get into position Mikoto was on him. Sharingan activated she kicked him three times in the stomach, knocking him to the ground after the last kick. The man quickly jumped back up and circled behind her, kicking as soon as he got close. She moved her body an inch to the left and he missed. The grabbed his leg and, leaning back to anchor her weight, swung him around twice then released him. He landed up against one of the porch posts.

Looking up to make sure Kisa and Sasuke weren't near the post she saw Kisa standing safely away from the now-damaged timber encouraging Sasuke to clap his hands and cheer. She smiled at her son. The cat-masked man stood up, but collapsed a second later holding his head. It was bleeding profusely. The second ANBU, this time a man in a rat mask walked forward.

"If you do not hand the boy over you will also be arrested." He stopped walking about ten feet away from her.

"If there are any ANBU who can defeat me in a fight, I will hand my son over." She jumped at the man and then disappeared, reappearing behind him. However in the split second she performed her maneuver he anticipated her and also turned ready to block her move. Using her Sharingan she saw what he was doing and quickly disappeared again, this time landing a blow before he could react. She then disappeared into the ground. The rat-masked man did not expect to see an Uchiha using earth jutsu, however, unbeknownst to him Mikoto was born an Earth element type and was extremely skilled in their use.

Mikoto reached up through the ground and pulled the man down into the dirt up to his waist. He dug his fingers in the dirt trying to escape.

The woman looked at him. "Two down, one to go. Oh, and by the way Rat, the soil is loose so you won't suffer any loss of circulation. However if you keep moving around like that the soil will become compacted and you will be severely injured. I would suggest staying motionless for the time being."

Mikoto felt four more people come up behind her and turned around. Fugaku and the three elders were standing with the rest of the clan.

"Where is Itachi?" She asked, her voice deadly serious.

"They have taken him away. I do not know where. I have a meeting with Hiashi in a few minutes, so if you could finish this up quick I have an announcement to make to the clan." His tone was equally serious, but she saw a sparkle in his eye. He was enjoying the show.

Unbelievably the third ANBU, a woman in a dog's mask moved forward and took position to fight. Mikoto was actually surprised. She expected the last one to refuse to fight. After all, continuing a fight after two of your comrades had been brought down, especially when your opponent gives you the opportunity to leave without further harm, is stupid and not considered proper protocol. She wondered how this woman even got to be an ANBU if she was this careless.

"I will not back down from you Mikoto."

"That's _Lady_ Mikoto to you." Mikoto spat at the woman's rudeness.

"Humph. You are no 'Lady'." The woman's bitter words made Mikoto suspicious. Did this woman know her? That mask definitely was coming off.

The two women launched themselves at each other. Blow for blow they both blocked each others kicks and jabs. Neither was sustaining any damage. Mikoto activated her Sharingan again looked at her opponents chakra. It was very strong, but unfamiliar.

Using a series of flicker moves Mikoto moved quickly around the dog-masked ANBU, disappearing into the ground several times. The ANBU kept turning around looking in different directions but all she could see was brief glimpses of the Uchiha woman. Mikoto saw her opponent starting to grow confused and she used another earth jutsu, this one opened up a six foot hole in the ground. She did another series of flicker movements, herding the ANBU until she fell in the hole. Mikoto quickly did a series of seals that pulled roots from the ground and wrapped around her body, immobilizing her.

Removing the mask Mikoto looked at the woman's face. "I don't know you. Why do you seem to hate me so much?"

"I don't like people who are full of themselves. You are nothing but a slave who traded her ninja career to be a baby machine for a washed up clan."

Mikoto laughed. "This 'baby machine' just whipped your ass woman."

Fugaku stepped forward and gave his wife a brief smile. He had enjoyed the show. Too bad the circumstances weren't more pleasant. Mikoto was really sexy when she was like this. The clan lord shook his head. He shouldn't be thinking of things like _that_ right now.

"Mikoto, knock them out so they don't hear what I'm about to say." Mikoto did as she was told, using a genjutsu to put them into a deep slumber.

"Attention!" He called out to the clan, all of whom were now assembled. They quieted down instantly. "The entire clan except for myself and three of the elders will immediately evacuate to the hide-out. This also applies to the Uchiha's living in the capital. Sasuke must be protected at all costs. I mean to the last man and woman!" He yelled the last sentence to make sure it was understood without question. "I will join you when I am able, otherwise, I will send messages."

He paused and looked at the confused faces. "Dr. Motoi has used deception to have Itachi removed from our custody. I will conduct recognizance to see what I can learn about what is going on then a plan for retrieval will be implemented. Shisui is also being sought. I am hoping I can depend on his sensei not to return him to the village. It is possible he will make his way to the hide out. It is also possible he will return the village and be taken into custody and hopefully re-united with Itachi. He is a smart boy, and since his life is not in danger and he has the Sharingan we will trust him to act on his own until we have better knowledge of where he is. You have one hour. Now clear out!"

Fugaku looked at his wife. Her face was expressionless. Kisa and Toshiro walked up.

"Do you know where Shisui was going on his mission?" Fugaku asked.

"It was a secret mission, back into Rice country coincidentally. Luckily that is near the hide out."

"Okay. Well, you better get going, then. We want to get out before they try to stop us."

Mikoto hugged Sasuke to her chest and looked up at her husband her brown eyes reflecting sorrow and worry, then ran into the house to pack.

Fugaku sent his chakra out into the area to search. There. In the trees by the lake. He chuckled darkly. Dr. Motoi was a dead man. It would be an Uchiha who killed him, but not the Uchiha the doctor expected. Fugaku could feel the faint chakra, full of killing intent, leaking from a barely contained chakra masking jutsu. No one got between Madara and his star pupil. Shuddering, Fugaku walked away, realizing that one day he could be the one in Motoi's shoes.

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**I've been keeping up with the manga and…wow. Total plot twist. Though I am pleased with how it is going. Although, I don't believe Itachi is completely innocent, I do think he was severely deluded and badly used. Both by his father and Madara. In this way, the innocent devotion Sasuke and Shisui show to him could become the only thing that keeps him grounded. I do hope we find out more about the fight between Shisui and Itachi. I'm a little suspicious about that now, too. Also – we got cheated out of seeing Madara's face again! He can't take off his mask or Sasuke's Amaterasu will attack him. Not fair!**

**Please review! It makes me happy XD**

**Next week, the clan relocates to the hide out, we find out where Itachi and Shisui are, and Itachi is forced to do something that makes him question his beliefs.**


	25. Chapter 25 Cold Blood

**Last week Itachi was removed from active duty and the custody of his clan due to the results of his psychiatric evaluation. **

**Thank-you for all the reviews and fav's. **

**Please review!**

**Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto is owned by Naruto**

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**Chapter 25 – Cold Blood**

Itachi woke up around dinner time feeling groggy and a little sick to his stomach. He quickly realized that he had been drugged, but it didn't feel like the tranquilizers Dr. Yakushi gave him. Maybe he had been give too much?

"Ah! Itachi, you are awake." Dr. Motoi walked into the room.

"Where am I?" Itachi's voice was strained. Looking around the room he saw that there was one door and no windows. The room itself was about ten foot square and had one bed, one table and two chairs.

"You have been removed from Konoha and the custody of your parents and clan so that you can be de-programmed and eventually adopted by a normal family." The doctor's smiling face shone with victory. "You will be the proof I need to disband the clans and rescue the other children."

"Dr. Motoi," Itachi said in a very serious voice. "You are a bloody loony."

Surprisingly enough Dr. Motoi stopped smiling. It was then that Itachi remembered that he wasn't supposed to be talking to this man. It was also then that the boy realized how sore his butt still was from yesterday, and five minutes later, how much more sore it was now.

Motoi exited the room without further comment.

'I wonder if father would mind so much if I just killed him?' Itachi wondered. However, the man wasn't a ninja and he hadn't done anything to endanger his life. He could get mad at him, hell, he was mad at him, but he didn't feel justified in killing him.

"I wish I knew what was going on." Itachi had a passing thought to contact Madara, but a surge of anger caused him to clench his teeth. He never wanted to see that man again. Besides, he could see at least two cameras in the room. Using the bracelet in such conditions would be stupid. He quickly looked down to verify if he was still wearing it.

Dr. Motoi came back an hour later with a small portion of rice and a glass of water. "This is all you get for the next twenty-four hours. Your good behavior will be rewarded with food. Bad behavior will be punished with beatings. Cooperate and you will be put with your new family quicker."

"Can't I go live with them now?" Itachi asked as he quickly ate his rice.

"You must denounce your clan and accept the life of a normal boy."

"Okay, I denounce my clan and will be a normal boy." Itachi spoke matter-of-factly.

Dr. Motoi looked at the boy with a calculating stare, then left the room.

Itachi looked at his empty rice bowl and water glass. "I guess this means no ice cream." He sat down on his bed and got into position to meditate. He decided his best course of action would be to go along with the doctor until his father came for him or he escaped.

Several hours later Itachi was awakened by an unfamiliar voice coming through his bracelet. _"Itachi? Respond."_

Very quietly Itachi buried his face in the blankets and answered. "Who is this?"

"_This is the Leader. Madara spoke of me once to you."_

Itachi thought back to when he first received the bracelet shortly after the Kyuubi attack.

"_Also, it is possible, although unlikely, that another man may contact you. If he does it is because something has happened to me. Do what he says."_

"_Who is he, so we know it is him?" Shisui was serious._

"_Call him 'Leader'. Too much information is not necessarily a good thing right now."_

"_He is your leader?" Itachi found it hard to imagine the man in front of him following orders._

_Madara laughed and re-adjusted his orange and black mask. "No, not quite. He follows my orders. You don't need to know specifics right now. However, it could be said that he is my 'second', although we walk separate paths." He laughed again at the confused faces in front of him. "Don't worry about it. Just follow his orders if he contacts you."_

"Has something happened to Madara?" Itachi's thoughts returned to his present predicament.

"_No. He is occupied elsewhere."_

"Humph. I bet. Off being a jerk somewhere else." Itachi was still very mad at his teacher.

The Leader was not impressed with the boy's glib remark and answered in a stern, commanding voice that made Itachi cringe. _"Itachi! You will give your master respect. He does hold the power of life and death over you, despite your apparent importance to him."_

For some reason this man scared Itachi. Even if he couldn't see him, he could feel the power coming through the Leader's commanding voice. He wondered if he was using a jutsu to modify his voice, then decided he was probably always like that.

Deciding that discretion was the better part of valor Itachi decided to modify his attitude. "Yes sir. I apologize for my previous remark. I meant no disrespect."

"_Hmm. Much better."_ The man's voice softened slightly. _"Now, do you have any idea where you are?"_

"No. The room has no windows and it must be soundproofed because I can't hear anything outside either. The only person I have seen is Dr. Motoi. He made no reference to other people. He said he is going to 'de-program' me so I can be adopted." Itachi gave more information than the Leader asked for, but he decided if it shortened the conversation it was worth it.

"_We figured as much. Fugaku has evacuated the clan to the Uchiha hideout. If by any chance you escape before Madara arrives make your way there. Do not go to Konoha or the capital."_

"Yes Leader. I will do as you say."

"_And Itachi? A bit of advice about Madara. He likes to use people, to tease them and make them mad. When you ran off and confronted him you set yourself up. Granted, he probably shouldn't have done what he did, but you must learn to govern your emotions better than that so you don't fall into his trap again. If it had been an enemy, you would have been very easy to kill. Also, you had your brother with you. Never take a child into that situation again. If you had died, then how could he have survived on his own?"_

Itachi opened his eyes wide in shock. He hadn't thought of that. What if it had been someone else instead of Madara? What if something happened to him? Sasuke was only two years old. He could never have found his way home.

"Ye…yes. I…" Itachi suddenly found himself blinking back tears. The thought that he could have put his brother in danger was too much for him to handle.

The Leader seemed to have understood what was going through the boy's mind. _"I'm glad you realize now. I will pass your information on to Madara. If you obtain any more info pass it directly on to Madara."_

"Yes. But…why did you contact me yourself instead of using Kabuto like last time?"

"_I wished to talk to you myself."_ The Leader cut the communication.

Itachi wiped the tears from his eyes and sniffed a few times. Why had the man wanted to talk to him? Was it to give him that advice about Madara? Or was it a warning? Would Madara really kill him if he didn't cooperate? He would have to be more careful. Obviously when Madara had teased him it was some kind of a test. But what was he testing?

"Probably the same thing as the doctors. To see if I'm mental or not." Itachi was slowly getting pissed off again. If Madara hadn't teased him, he wouldn't have broken down, his father wouldn't have admitted him to the hospital, he wouldn't have met Dr. Motoi, and he wouldn't be in the middle of nowhere stuck in a house with a madman.

"Has it never occurred to them that perhaps it is the world that's mental, and not me?" Itachi closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

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"Interesting advice you gave the boy." Madara stepped out onto a balcony that overlooked an industrialized city.

The orange-haired man stood with his back to Madara, looking out at the city. "He could have potentially placed Sasuke in danger. I decided a little lesson in maturity was in order."

Madara laughed. "True. True. I think you may have put the fear of God into the boy for a minute or two, there."

"Well, that's because I am a God."

Madara laughed again. "Yes you are."

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Sarutobi removed his Hokage robe and hung it neatly on a coat rack. He was very pleased with the way events transpired. Almost the entire Uchiha clan had left the village within an hour of Mikoto beating three top ANBU into the ground. Literally. He chuckled. That woman always had been an amazing kunoichi.

The Daimyou would now hear of the clan's "defection" and become concerned. The advisors who had had accepted bribes from Dr. Motoi to whisper into the Daimyou's ear would no doubt be back-peddling for a foothold when confronted by their angry lord.

The reason Sarutobi had not removed the doctor from his post was that he was under orders from the Daimyou to keep him. Technically, he didn't have to follow the Daimyou's orders, since Konoha was, in essence it's own "nation". However, the real world was never that black and white. When he had received Dr. Motoi's report about Itachi, he knew he could use the boy to force Motoi into the open and reveal the man's true nature to the Daimyou.

Earlier the Hokage had drawn up mission papers for Itachi. Unbeknownst to the boy he was now on a "B" rank mission, and would be paid very well from Sarutobi's own account. He would go that far and further to get rid of that doctor, and Itachi's maturity and personality made him perfect for the mission. And if the good doctor turned up dead in the process…

"Maybe I'll give Itachi a bonus for that." He chuckled at the thought of the seven-year-old boy holding up Motoi's severed head. Especially if he had that serious look on his face he always showed.

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Shisui reached the Valley of the End just as the September sun rose over the eastern horizon. His sensei had received word that the boy was to be returned to Konoha and then taken into protective custody. He was shocked to learn that they believed he was being abused by his parents and thought he needed to be protected.

Sensei started to talk about how nice the Valley of the End was this time of year with the statues of the First Hokage and Madara Uchiha rising majestically over the hundred foot waterfall and if one ran really fast one could be there in time to see the sunrise. Shisui excused himself then, saying he would go out to get some take-out to eat and ran faster than he ever run before.

Collapsing on the grass, still wet with dew, he breathed heavily. He was exhausted and really wanted to fall asleep. However, he still had a short ways to go. While he was running the previous night he had decided to make his way to the Uchiha hideout. There were always clan ninja's stationed there and they would no doubt have received word about what was going on. They would know what he should do next, maybe even let him hang out there for a while.

"Hey! Lazy! Get off your ass!" The loud, commanding voice scared Shisui so bad he jumped to his feet and instantly threw two kunai and the source of the sound.

"Missed me!" The voice came from behind him.

Shisui quickly turned around and relaxed.

"Father! That was mean." He frowned.

"What was mean? Just testing your reflexes, boy. You're getting slow in your old age." Toshiro laughed at him. "I am glad to see you made your way here, though. The others will be arriving tomorrow. If you can stay out of sight we'd like you to stay here and watch for them."

"The others? _Everyone_ is coming?"

"They took Itachi into custody already. He was in the hospital for something, I don't know what, and Dr. Motoi built up a case for abuse and the Hokage was forced to act on it. They tried to get Sasuke too, but Mikoto beat the shit out of them."

"Oh…I missed it." Shisui frowned. He would loved to have seen Mikoto going all out. He had seen her sparring several times and she was pretty amazing.

"Is Itachi okay? He can get pretty mad." Shisui also wondered why his cousin had been in the hospital, and assumed Fugaku had probably injured him again.

"We don't know where he was taken."

"Okay. I'll stay here, then. What do I do when I see them?"

"Light this rocket. We'll have someone watching for it."

Shisui was given the rocket and some food. He setup a small camp next to Madara's statue and lay down. The others would be arriving in ox-carts since not everyone was able to walk or run like his father and the other ninjas who had arrived in less than a day. He had plenty of time to sleep.

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Itachi needed to know where he was so he could tell Madara. However, getting the information out of Dr. Motoi was proving to be a problem. Itachi did not want to use physical force on the man because he wasn't a ninja. He remembered the promise he had made years ago after he had beaten up Yota not to attack someone weaker than him. However the man was not making it easy. He was, to say the least, irritating.

Forget about all the lying, cheating and steeling the man had done, Itachi just wanted him dead so he would stop talking! His mother could talk non-stop at times, but it was never this irritating. Motoi was reading a book about a "normal" boy who lived a "normal" life with "normal" parents and attended a "normal" school…And Itachi swore that if he heard the word "normal" one more time he would kill the person who said it!

"May I go outside please?" Itachi interrupted the man's reading.

"Outside?"

"Yes. Johnny…in the story Johnny gets to play outside. Can I play soccer?" Itachi decided to improvise. Maybe if he saw what was outside he would recognize something.

"Do you like to play soccer?" Dr. Motoi was a little excited. Maybe he was making progress.

"Yes. I used to have a soccer ball. But I killed it."

"You…killed it?"

"Yes. I stabbed it with my kunai." Itachi spoke as if he was talking about the weather.

"Why?"

"Mommy and Daddy beat me for crying and I was mad." Itachi frowned and looked at the floor, then started swinging his legs back and forth. It was something Johnny had done in the story.

"Oh. Poor Itachi! Yes, let's go outside." Dr. Motoi smiled.

The doctor led the small boy through a long, dark hallway. There were many rooms; some of them had the doors torn off the hinges. Filth was everywhere, including a few dead rats, spider webs, and garbage. There were still some rooms with closed doors, and some of those doors looked new when compared to the discarded ones. The only light came from the sun peaking in through various windows in the rooms on one side of the hall. Itachi decided that must mean his room was in the middle of the building. He also noted that he couldn't see any ground or hills when looking through the windows, meaning they must be on an upper floor.

A minute later they walked down a large staircase. They had been on the fourth floor. When they reached the main floor Itachi noticed a putrid, horrible smell wafting up from the staircase as it continued its descent into the basement. He had never smelled death before, but he was sure that's what it was. Shuddering, and thankful that they were going outside instead of downstairs; Itachi followed the doctor through the front doors and out into a large yard. He looked back at the doors and saw a large red cross painted over them.

So, they were staying in an abandoned hospital. Itachi breathed a sigh of relief. He could now escape. However, the Leader had told him to contact Madara with information on his location. Remembering the man's strong voice, and the fear he had felt upon hearing it, he decided he should report to his teacher before running away.

Dr. Motoi smiled when he heard Itachi sigh. "Boys enjoy being outside. I am sorry I don't have a bike or any balls for you to play with, but we can stand here for a while and relax."

"Yes. I fell better. Thank-you." Itachi adopted a polite tone and bowed. He then concentrated on his bracelet, calling Madara. The masked shinobi responded immediately.

"_What have you to report?"_ His voice was strong as always.

"Dr. Motoi, why is this hospital abandoned?" Itachi decided that questioning the doctor would be the fastest way to convey information.

Back in Konoha Madara sat in the branches of a tree overlooking the lake in the Uchiha compound. He quickly caught on to what Itachi was doing. Smiling, he silently congratulated the boy on his cleverness.

"Well, Itachi, the hospital is a remnant from the great wars that brought forth Rokudan, the father of shinobi. I thought it a fitting place to end the reign of the shinobi so I bought it in a land auction."

"Rikudou." Itachi corrected the doctor.

"Oh. I can never remember that idiot's name. Well it doesn't matter."

"What was that smell in the basement?"

The doctor sighed. "When the hospital was abandoned the morgue was still full of unclaimed bodies. Over the years bounty hunters took advantage of the morgue's facilities to hold the bodies of their victims, but not all of them were ever re-collected. I went down there a few weeks ago, after I bought this place and there were about thirty bodies in various stages of decomposition, as well as probably a couple hundred skeletons."

Itachi gulped, shuddering involuntarily. This was not going to help his nightmares. He wasn't afraid of ghosts, or zombies, or other fantasy creatures, but sometimes his dreams tried to prove him otherwise.

"Do we have to stay here?" Itachi spoke in a small voice. He silently cursed himself for sounding weak when Madara was listening.

"It's just dead bodies. They can't hurt you. All they do is smell bad."

Itachi looked up at the doctor. The man truly believed that. He really was insane.

Madara decided he had heard enough. _"Itachi, I know exactly where you are. There is an abandoned hospital near the Uchiha hideout that fits this description. Do not leave until I get there. We have business with this man."_

"Ok." Itachi used the words to answer both Madara and Dr. Motoi. Madara cut the communication. The boy looked over the large yard. It was about an acre, but it must have been a beautiful garden once. He could see overgrown rose bushes, tall cherry trees, and a rusty metal fence. Tall grass covered the area. It would be perfect to hide in, if only Madara hadn't told him to stay. He could be gone tonight. The doctor was not a ninja and would be unable to catch him. He had a feeling the elder Uchiha was playing another game with him. And unfortunately, he had no choice but to play along.

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Madara materialized in Fugaku's office at the police station. He had decided that he would teach the boy a new lesson, and that Fugaku should be there. He had a feeling it would please the clan lord, and for some reason he was feeling generous at the moment.

Fugaku's desk was neatly strewn with several piles of folders containing Dr. Motoi's personal and public records. He was currently looking at a list that sat on a small pile directly in front of him. He chuckled when he glanced down and saw that the abandoned hospital was at the top of the list.

"I have found the boy. Are you interested?" Madara's voice was calm, but exuded a deadly anticipation.

Fugaku looked at him. "Why share the information with me? If you know where he is I find it odd that you would wait to collect him."

"I believe Itachi is ready for a lesson in how to deal with those who threaten our clan. His father should be there."

Meeting the taller man's eye (only one could be seen through single eyehole in the mask) Fugaku smiled, then nodded his head once. There was no hesitation in his decision. "Yes. I agree. Tell me where he is, I'll collect his weapons and meet you there." If there was one thing Fugaku could share common ground with his arch nemesis, it was over the treatment of those who would harm the clan. He believed Itachi was more than ready for a lesson in how to deal with them.

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Shisui had been up for several hours watching for the caravan of Uchiha's coming from Konoha. He had climbed up one of the statues and now stood on Madara Uchiha's stone head, looking toward the east.

The sun had barely risen when he noticed a disturbance on the horizon. Activating his sharingan he detected many chakra signatures. He quickly lit the rocket and watched as it gained altitude then exploded quietly in a burst of red. It took forty minutes for the ox carts and people to finally make it to the statues.

Shisui yelled down at them from his perch. "Hey! Slowpokes! What took you so long?" Many of them waved back up at him, happy that he was safe. Jumping down from the statue he was promptly given a very large hug by his mother.

"Mother. Not in front of everyone." Shisui's face was red from embarrassment.

"I'm so glad you're safe." She smiled. "Fugaku and some of the elders stayed behind to look for Itachi."

"Well, he'll be okay. He's a genius, remember?" Shisui gave his mother and Mikoto a big smile. Despite their worry, they couldn't help but return the smile.

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Early morning found Itachi sitting on his bed with his back against the wall. He had the dream again, the same one he had started having years ago, about him walking through the village with a bloody sword. He was asking himself where the ghosts were. He kept seeing Sasuke cry, and he wanted to call out to him, to comfort him, but his dream-self refused to move. After he woke up he refused to fall asleep again.

"_Itachi?"_ Madara's voice came over the bracelet.

Itachi pulled his knees up and put his head down on top of them so he could mask his voice from the cameras. "Yes?"

"_When you can, bring the doctor outside. Your father and I are out here waiting for you."_

"Father too?" Itachi felt an unexpected surge of happiness. His father had actually come for him.

"_Yes."_

"What time is it?"

"_8:23am."_

"Ok. I'll see you outside, then."

Thirty minutes later Dr. Motoi brought Itachi some rice and a glass of water. As always he ate his meal quickly while the doctor read more of the adventures of the normal boy Johnny.

"Dr. Motoi? Can we go read outside?" Itachi asked, again swinging his legs back and forth to imitate Johnny.

"Hmm. I guess that would be nice. You are being a good boy, Itachi. Are you enjoying the book?"

"Yes. Very much." Itachi stood up and once again followed the doctor out of the building and into the large yard.

Once outside the doctor sat on a cement wall next to the building and reached into his pocket for the book. Itachi looked around the yard for his father, but didn't see anything. He closed his eyes and listened. Something was moving to his left.

"Dr. Motoi. I have found you." Fugaku walked calmly into the clearing. Standing twenty feet away he threw a small Katana at Itachi. The boy caught it easily. "Slit his throat Itachi." The words were deadly calm.

Both Itachi and Dr. Motoi looked at Fugaku in shock.

Itachi recovered first. "But father…he is not a ninja and he is weaker than me. He should be arrested and put in prison."

Madara walked up at that point from the opposite direction. "Itachi, this is a lesson in clan loyalties. This man is an enemy to the Uchiha."

The boy looked at the doctor who had stood up from his seat and looked back and forth between the two adult Uchiha. He couldn't believe what they were telling the boy to do. It proved everything he had been fighting to stop in the clans. "Itachi. Don't listen to them. Come with me and I can free you from the shackles of your clan."

Itachi looked at his sword, then back to his father. The man's face was stern and set into a frown. Why had he come here with Madara, of all people? He knew his father was fiercely loyal to the clan and quick to kill those who were traitors, but Madara had abandoned his followers when his plan to kidnap Sasuke had failed. There were some major contradictions going on here, but the boy couldn't put his finger on what exactly they were. His only conclusion was that Madara and his father were here for two different reasons, but that they both, for some reason, wanted to watch Itachi kill Dr. Motoi in cold blood. If he refused…

Fugaku noted his son's hesitation and started to get angry. "Itachi. _Lord_ Itachi. If you do not have the guts to execute your target you will never be a ninja and you cannot be considered worthy enough to be my heir."

Wide-eyed Itachi stared at his father. The words cut deep. Of course ninjas conducted assassinations all the time. The assignments came from the Hokage and were never questioned. He had never thought about who the targets must be, but now he realized the answer.

Itachi walked over to the doctor, staring into his eyes. The man was still clutching his book to his chest.

"Itachi! Don't do this!" The man pleaded.

Quickly Itachi used a transportation jutsu to appear behind the doctor and kicked the back of his knees, forcing him to fall to the ground. He placed his knee on the man's back and with his free hand grabbed Dr. Motoi's hair and pulled his head up. He raised his sword.

Suddenly, a memory from two years ago when he had nearly kill Yota came to mind.

_Shisui sighed. "Why did you do it? He was just calling us names because he's so weak. Even the other Hyuuga's at school call him weak. He's just a stupid bully. You shouldn't waste your energy on weak people." Itachi looked at Shisui like he had just said the wisest thing ever._

"_You are right. From now on I will fight only those strong enough to make a good fight." Itachi was determined. He felt no satisfaction from beating up that boy. He hadn't even put up a good fight. _

Dr. Motoi was weaker than Yota was back then. This wasn't a fair fight. Yet, this is what ninja do. Back then he had thought ninjas only killed strong opponents. How naïve.

Madara and Fugaku, two of the most powerful ninjas in the shinobi world stood over the seven-year-old boy as he sliced his katana across the doctor's neck and watched him suffocate, then pass out from blood loss. Dying quickly. They smiled in joy as the boy finished severing the head, then held it up to drain the blood. They congratulated the boy on saving the clan as he sealed it in a plastic bag his father gave him. Later, the clan toasted his victory over his captor and told him he would be a great leader like his father. Madara reported back to his subordinate about how well the boy was developing.

But no one was there in the middle of the night when Itachi woke up screaming. He was alone. His parents weren't there to hear him.

He dreamed he was slitting the man's throat, but the severed head kept pleading with him to stop, to spare his life. Instead of Madara and Fugaku watching, it was Johnny and Sasuke. Both of whom were terrified and screamed at him to spare the man. Shisui was looking up at him through a pool of water that had suddenly appeared at his feet and lectured him on killing those weaker than him. And Obito…Obito's words were what woke him up. They were what made him scream into the empty night. "Itachi. He made me do the same thing. And I was also too weak to say 'no'."

It was the first time he had heard his cousin's voice since he was four-years-old. And this is what it told him. That it took someone strong-willed to spare the lives of the weak, and someone weak-willed to kill them.

He got up and walked out of his parent's apartment in the Hideout to the throne room where the head was currently on display. He stood in front of it for the next two hours, one thought continuously circulating through his mind as he held the book containing Johnny's adventures in his hand.

"Perhaps Dr. Motoi was right".

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**Next week Itachi turns eight and Fugaku moves his plans one step forward.**

**Please review! Please? You know you want to…. XD**


	26. Chapter 26 Sharingans and Whirlpools

**Thanks for all the reviews!**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto.**

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**Chapter 26 Sharingans and Whirlpools**

The severed head dropped on Fugaku's desk rolled a foot before it was stopped by a stack of scrolls. The plastic it was wrapped in rustled slightly as it rocked back and forth a couple times before settling. Fugaku looked at it in annoyance, then looked up at the man who had delivered it. He was in his office at the police station and the last thing he wanted was to deal with _this_ right now.

"Is the cat delivering mice again to appease his human masters?" Fugaku said sarcastically.

"The cat does not deliver mice to appease his human masters, but as a warning of what will happen when his human servants fail to please him." The tall, masked Uchiha sat himself down in a chair across from Fugaku's desk. Stretching his feet out in front of him he folded his arms over his chest and sighed.

"We…I am not your servant."

"Yes, you are Fugaku. All of you." Madara's voice was calm and he spoke quieter than usual so as not to draw attention to himself should someone be nearby.

"And where do you get these heads from anyway? This is the fifth one since September." Fugaku let the "servant" comment drop since an argument would be pointless.

"They failed their entrance exam."

"Entrance? Into what? What are you up to?"

Madara smirked, then changed the subject. "Itachi turns eight tomorrow. I know you are an impatient man, as am I. So shall you do it, or do you want me to?"

Fugaku was confused. "Do what? Buy the balloons or the cake? Or perhaps you wish to hire a clown and pony for a party?"

"And the look on Itachi's face when he saw all of that would, no doubt, be priceless. However, I refer to the Sharingan. We both can see it. He has been ready for it to awaken for the last year. Perhaps longer. His personality and his ability to suppress emotion will make it difficult for him to awaken it on his own. It must be forced. It appears that in the past only you and I have been able to bring out emotion in the boy."

"Yes I realize that. If left on his own it could be many years before the Sharingan awakens. But… what does it matter to you?"

"Oh. It matters a great deal. Do you think you are the only one who has plans for the boy?"

Fugaku ground his teeth in anger. "Itachi is my son. He will follow the path I set forward for the clan."

"Humph. And you plan to stop me, how?" Madara chuckled. "I'll tell you what, if Itachi does not have the Sharingan by this time next week, I will take matters into my own hands. I can be very cruel, Fugaku, as you no doubt know." Madara stood and used a transportation jutsu to disappear.

Fugaku slammed his fist down on the desk. He had planned on forcing the Sharingan when Itachi turned eight. He had decided to take that action several months ago. However, he was going to wait six more months before doing it, just in case. But now… Well, at least Mikoto no longer protested how he trained the boy. Not after her run-in with Madara. She wanted the man dead and realized what it was going to take to make it happen.

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Shaking the rain out of his hair Itachi approached his house. It was his eighth birthday and his team had just returned from a mission. They had insisted on taking him out for barbecue beef though, before going home.

"Itachi. Welcome home. I trust your mission went well?" Fugaku had stepped out of his meeting room to great his son.

Itachi bowed to him. "Yes father. Everything went as planned."

"Very good. Another successful B rank mission." He activated his Sharingan and looked closely at his son. Itachi looked back at him, wondering what was going on. In the last few months his father had become very interested in his B and C rank missions. The more dangerous, the more interested he was.

"It was hardly a challenge. I think the Hokage is labeling the missions incorrectly." Itachi was feeling a little disgruntled. While his team had a general mission of retrieving documents from secured strongholds, they also did other missions including escorting dignitaries, farm work, and delivering items to teams already in the field. A lot of it was boring and didn't really test the teams' abilities properly.

"If that is the case, then it is time for you and me to go all out, Itachi. Tomorrow at 9am be ready." Fugaku walked back into his room and shut the door.

Itachi stared at the empty hallway. What was his father talking about? Their training sessions were always strenuous. Much more so than most of his missions, even. Perhaps he was going to be taught a new Uchiha clan jutsu? Well, with all the rain learning fire jutsus would be good right now. His chances of burning down the forest were slightly lessened.

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The next day found father and son outside of the village in an isolated training field. Fugaku had not spoken a word to Itachi since the previous afternoon. He seemed to be either pissed off or pre-occupied. Or maybe both. Itachi was a little nervous. When his father was like this, the training was often used to take out his frustrations by beating up his son.

Fugaku looked at his son. He saw Itachi's apprehension and frowned. The boy was good at sensing other people's emotions and he already knew something was wrong. However, today that wasn't going to help him. Using his chakra to give off a strong aura of killing intent he launched himself at Itachi, knocking the boy across the clearing and into a tree. Itachi quickly got to his feet and stared at his father in shock. He had not expected an attack like that. It was so fast he had seen nothing but a blur.

"That was pathetic." Fugaku spat at his son. "You are worthless to me if you brag about your missions being easy, yet cannot dodge a simple attack."

Itachi watched his father closely. The man had activated his Sharingan and returned his gaze. Itachi quickly jumped to the side when he felt his father's presence beside him, but it wasn't fast enough. Again he was knocked several feet across the clearing.

"Either you are serious, Itachi. Or you are dead. Which is it?"

Itachi's face went blank and he stood up and stared at his father again. Reaching into his holster he pulled out a kunai. Something was wrong with his father. What was bothering him? Did he do something to piss him off? Fugaku's attacks were faster and much more savage that usual. Itachi, as gifted as he was in Taijutsu couldn't keep up. His father's attacks, when combined with his Sharingan gave him an edge that was difficult for experienced jounin to beat. What chance did Itachi have?

He dodged again, feeling the wind move slightly as his fathers arm passed over his head. He quickly fell down on his side and swung his legs in an attempt to knock his father down. Failing, he stood up and jumped at his back. Fugaku grabbed his legs and threw him on the ground. As he lifted his leg to kick the boy, Itachi grabbed it and rolled away, effectively tripping him.

Itachi and Fugaku both jumped up at the same time. Itachi did a transportation jutsu to appear behind Fugaku's back and swiped at him with his kunai, missing. Fugaku turned around quickly and grabbed his son by the throat, then grabbed the kunai out of Itachi's hand and sliced the boy in an angle from his upper right chest to the top of his left pelvis. It was a shallow cut that started beading immediately.

Fugaku released Itachi's neck long enough to kick him in the chest, knocking him a few feet away. Itachi jumped quickly to his feet, unaware of his injury. He successfully dodged as Fugaku attempted to kick him again. Reaching up over his head he pulled out his katana.

Fugaku quickly made the hand signs for a fireball jutsu and launched it at his son. Itachi dodged it and landed hard on his knees. Suddenly out of breath the boy put his hand on his chest and noticed for the first time that he was bleeding. He looked and saw the long cut. Itachi was knocked down again, Fugaku having taken advantage of the boy's inattentiveness.

Itachi stood up and gulped, then coughed up blood. That scared him. He looked at his hand, then coughed up some more blood. He dodged again when his father got close to him. He quickly realized that the level of his father's attacks were far above what he usually used when sparring. Itachi was completely on the defensive. He could not longer attack.

"Father, what is going on? Shouldn't we stop now?" Itachi asked in a worried voice. Blood was dripping drown his chest onto the ground and he felt a little dizzy.

Fugaku laughed at him. "As I said earlier. Either you fight, or you die. My heir will not be a weak man who gives up when he bleeds a little."

Itachi formed the signs for a fireball jutsu, then quickly did a transportation jutsu to the spot his father jumped to. He pulled out his katana to strike, but it was pulled out of his hands and plunged into his leg. Itachi fell down, the small sword sticking out of his thigh. He quickly pulled it out, and stood up. His father was not kidding. Was he really going to kill him if he thought he was weak? His chest was starting to hurt badly and he could barely walk on his leg. If he died...

Fugaku struck him again and Itachi fell down onto his hands and knees, throwing up the contents of his stomach. When he looked up he saw his father's face. It was contorted in fury. The look had a profound effect on the boy. He stood up again and met his father's eyes. The man's Sharingan was strong and stared back at him with such power and killing intent that Itachi now had no doubt. His father would kill him if he failed this training session. If that's what it was. Perhaps he was no longer deemed acceptable to be the heir. In which case he was to be killed and Sasuke would take his place.

Sasuke as the heir? The thought angered Itachi. He did not want the boy to go through all of this. The image of the happy toddler having his arm broken or getting a concussion or being beaten senseless in the guise of training was maddening. The image of Sasuke as the heir, married to a woman who would cry because of her sad life as the wife of a clan lord made his heart burn in hatred. The idea that Itachi would be buried by the clan and called weak because he could not stand up to his father was the final straw.

Looking at his father he saw the man's face slowly turn from anger to surprise, then flash with fear. Itachi forgot his injuries and launched himself at Fugaku. Suddenly he was able to run faster, see his fathers moves, and counter all of his attacks. He wasn't even thinking about what he was doing. If he saw his father move he instantly moved the same direction. He had dropped his katana in favor of a kunai.

Fugaku took several cuts from his son's kunai before he decided to end the fight. Using an advanced genjutsu he rendered the boy unconscious, then lowered him to the ground. He had done it. Finally. Sitting down he stripped off the boy's shirt and pants and used chakra to stop the bleeding on his wounds, then bandaged them. Pulling the boy's clothes back on he used a strip of a bandage to hold the shirt closed. Fugaku then saw to his own cuts. Surprisingly he had been unable to counter them until he cast the genjutsu. Itachi's potential as a shinobi was truly amazing. Sighing in relief he watched his sleeping son.

An hour later Itachi slowly regained consciousness with a pounding headache. He felt someone open his mouth and place a pill under his tongue.

"Let it dissolve, Itachi. It will replenish your blood." It was his father's voice.

Slowly Itachi opened his eyes. He moved his hands to touch the cut on his chest and found it was bandaged. They were still in the field.

"What happened?" Itachi finally asked.

"You now have the Sharingan. You are my son." Fugaku smiled at him.

Itachi sat up, staring at his father in disbelief. Fugaku pulled out a small mirror.

"Look in the mirror and show your eyes. Just think about it and they will come."

Itachi did what he was told and was shocked. Red eyes stared back at him.

"As you know, for the Sharingan to appear a strong emotion must precede. You are not capable of showing much emotion, as Dr. Yakushi explained. I had hoped an event would trigger it during one of your missions, however, that did not happen. Today's fight was to meant to bring out the necessary events required for the Sharingan's awakening.

"You are not the youngest to awaken the Sharingan, as you are eight, however, you are the youngest not to mention the only clan member to ever awaken it with all three tomoe showing in each eye. That usually takes years. You are truly a genius Itachi."

"I…never had a fight like that before. But if everyone else gets theirs at twelve or thirteen, why did I have to get it now?"

"Because, Itachi, I have something I want you to do and I need you trained up for it."

"What?"

"I cannot tell you yet. But now, we will begin training with the Sharingan. A whole new universe has opened to you. Power beyond what you ever imagined. However, responsibility must also be exercised and the laws and limitations placed on certain aspects of the Sharingan must be adhered to. The penalties are severe for transgressions."

Itachi was feeling a little shell shocked. "Yes father."

Madara's voice came over the bracelet and echoed in Itachi's mind. Obviously he was nearby, masking his chakra and watching the fight._ "Itachi. Good job. You are more than I had hoped for. And Itachi. Did you see the fear in Fugaku's eyes? Did you see that?"_

Itachi smiled. He had seen it. He remembered now. The boy suddenly felt the power that comes from knowing an enemies secret. A secret that the enemy would sell his soul to protect.

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The day after he got his Sharingan Itachi took a walk. He had received a summons from Madara to join him in the woods. The rain had started falling again and Itachi wore a bamboo conical hat called a _kasa_ to keep the rain off his head. Reaching the agreed-upon meeting area Itachi was surprised to see that Madara was already there, waiting.

"Itachi. Congratulations." Madara's strong voice had a tone of victory about it.

Itachi looked up at the tall man. "Thank-you." It was all he could think to say. After all, he was still bandaged and sore. Not to mention pissed off at his father for setting him up. Again. He still hadn't forgiven Fugaku or Madara for making him kill Dr. Motoi.

Madara could sense the boy's anger, but he ignored it. "Itachi, look at me." He grabbed the boy by the chin so he couldn't look away. Instinctively Itachi activated his Sharingan and looked into Madara's single visible eye. Instead of the usual red eye surrounded by three tomoe, Itachi saw three black circles where the tomoe should be, joined together by three lines.

Staring deep into Itachi's Sharingan eye, Madara was surprised by what he saw. It was different from what he had seen in Shisui's eyes. Itachi's eyes were very developed. Almost as if they had achieved the clan's Kekkei Genkai years ago. He thought back to when he first met Itachi. He had run off after Fugaku broke his arm. That was, perhaps, the most upset the boy had ever been. Next to his outburst last fall, that is. Could the Sharingan have awoken then, but for some reason not shown any visible signs? No, that didn't quite make sense. Itachi had no advanced vision, in fact Madara suspected he might be a little near sighted. He did have a habit of squinting, even though he wasn't aware he was doing it.

Madara continued his probe. He finally saw what he was looking for. This boy definitely had the makings of the Mangekyou Sharingan. He saw the basic elements waiting to form.

"Unbelievable." Madara mumbled.

"What?" Itachi asked quietly.

"Your eyes…so powerful. What a shame to let all this go to waste. Itachi, I have said it before and I will say it again. You stay with me and the power you attain will be unlimited."

"And if I don't want to?" Itachi kept his voice even.

There was a several seconds of silence, during which Madara fought to control his anger. Itachi's insolence should have been expected, but the elder Uchiha was not in the mood for it. He had waited too long for the boys to mature and he would not allow them to be misplaced by a petulant eight year old.

He finally brought himself under control and spoke. "And why would you do that young Itachi?"

Itachi continued to look up at him. Madara realized he still had a grip on the boy's chin and released it. Itachi rubbed at the red marks on his jaw.

"Everyone has plans for me. They make me do things I don't want to do."

"Like what?"

"Dr. Motoi should have been arrested, not killed. I could have waited until I was twelve to get the Sharingan. There's more. I'm sure you're not interested." Itachi looked away and frowned.

"You are right. I'm not interested. You are a son of the Uchiha clan and as such you will bend to our rules and traditions. Without complaint."

Madara looked down at the young boy. He could see that Itachi did have complaints, but for now he would follow orders.

He opened his hand and placed it on the boy's chest, sending healing chakra into the gash hidden behind the bandages. Itachi looked down and watched. Madara next moved his hand down to Itachi's leg and healed that wound as well.

"Thank-you." Itachi said when Madara finished. He didn't know what to think about Madara's lecture. It was the same one his father would have given him. "I guess…I guess I should go now."

"No. I will spend a few hours today teaching you how to use the Sharingan." Madara stood back and smiled. "You don't have anything else planned today, do you?"

Itachi sighed. "No." He had actually been planning on spending some time with Sasuke. But that would have to wait.

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Returning home that night Itachi was surprised to see his bed occupied by a small toddler. Mikoto showed up at his door in her robe and looked at her sons with a small smile.

"He was very upset when you didn't come home. He's formed quite a bond with you, Itachi." Her voice was quiet, sounding both happy and sad at the same time.

Itachi frowned at looked down at the floor. "I know. I'm sorry. I had to train late." He glanced at his clock and saw that it was almost 3am. Madara had kept him training for almost sixteen hours.

Picking the small boy up in his arms he held him close then pressed his face on Sasuke's forehead and sighed. Itachi carried Sasuke down the hall to the boy's bedroom then laid him down on the bed and pulled the covers over his small body.

"Itachi. You finally came home. I got a new action figure we can play with." Sasuke opened his eyes for a couple seconds, then closed them and went back to sleep.

Itachi smiled and whispered quietly. "Not now Sasuke. Maybe later."

Mikoto appeared in the hallway outside the kitchen and called softly to Itachi as he closed Sasuke's door. "I have your dinner ready. Come eat something before you go to bed."

Shocked, Itachi looked up at his mother. "It's so late. You didn't have to do that."

"I want to Itachi. You are my son, and…" She wanted to say more, but there was so much that needed to be said she didn't know where to begin. She knew what Fugaku had done in order for Itachi to gain the Sharingan. She also knew it was necessary, that Itachi was their only hope. However, things would get a lot harder for the boy from here on out. He would be training with Madara, Fugaku, and as a shinobi under the direction of the Hokage. Three different and widely varying ideologies were beginning to pull at the young boy. How would he react? Which one would he embrace?

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"Itachi." Fugaku sat on the edge of his son's bed and shook him once to wake him up.

"Father. What's wrong?" Itachi opened his eyes and looked up at his father's serious expression.

"You don't need to get up now. I just wanted to pass on some information before I leave for work. Over the last week while you were away on your mission several genin and chuunin went missing. Yesterday while you were…training…some of their bodies were found. We believe Orochimaru is in the area again. The Third is dragging his feet since the man was his student at one time so apprehending him will be a problem. Despite his criminal activities he is technically still a Konoha shinobi and we cannot arrest him without Sarutobi's permission. ANBU has been put in charge of the investigation this time so other than finding bodies we are out of the loop."

"I take it he is still interested in Shisui and me?" Itachi said hoarsely. He had only been asleep for three hours and his voice didn't seem to want to wake up.

"Very likely. Shisui was informed yesterday, so he already knows. Sasuke is not to leave the compound unless Mikoto or I is with him." Fugaku stood up. "Now go back to sleep."

Itachi watched as his father left the room. 'Why didn't Madara mention it then?' He wondered as he drifted back to sleep.

The next time Itachi woke up he felt something poking him in the side. Opening his eyes he saw Sasuke holding two action figures in his small hands. Itachi shifted so that he was lying on his back, but he felt something fall off of him. Looking down he saw about fifteen toys arranged on his body and bed.

"Sasuke, what are you doing?" Itachi lifted himself up so that he was sitting.

Sasuke looked up at him with a big smile, then laughed. Mikoto opened the door and looked in.

"Sasuke sweety, don't disturb your brother." She walked in and picked the toddler up. "Oh, how did you get all those toys in here?"

Itachi looked at them. "I think they were mine, mother. It looks like he found the box they were stored in."

"Yes! Itachi has lots of toys!" Sasuke kicked his feet and Mikoto put him down. "But his ball is broken." He ran over to the dresser and opened it, pulling out a deflated soccer ball. He brought it over to Itachi. "Fix it!"

Itachi looked sadly at the ball. Obito came into this thoughts. When they had tried to retrieve his body, it wasn't underneath the rocks. It was assumed he had been taken back to the Rock village, but nothing was confirmed. Where was he? And what about the dream he had back at the Hideout? Did Fugaku make Obito do something he didn't want to do? Was Madara involved?

Looking up from the ball Itachi saw that Mikoto and Sasuke were no longer in the room. He heard voices in the hallway.

"You need to stay out of Itachi's things, Sasuke. And don't play with the ball again. It makes your brother sad."

"But it was broken. If we fix it he'll be happy." Sasuke was trying to whisper, but it came out as a husky version of his normal voice. Toddlers weren't very good at whispering.

"Sasuke. Some things can't be fixed."

Itachi got out of bed. He wanted to find Shisui and ask him some questions.

Mikoto saw Itachi stand up from her spot in the hall. "Don't make your bed, Itachi, I'm about to start laundry and I want to wash the sheets. And take a bath before you go out." She smiled at him.

Itachi looked down at himself and the sheets. They were both covered in dried mud. He hadn't bothered to change before climbing into bed when he got home early that morning.

"Itachi was naughty." Sasuke frowned and pointed a finger at him.

Itachi smiled. "Yes, I am. But with all the rain, it's almost a waste of time."

"Too true, Itachi. And Sasuke, it's not polite for a younger brother to correct his elders." Mikoto walked into the room and started stripping the bed.

"I don't mind, mother."

"No, but your father does. He is very strict about manners, you should know that." Mikoto stopped what she was doing and looked at her sons. "He was mentioning to me the other day that Sasuke shouldn't even be calling you by your name, but using the more formal 'big brother'."

Itachi looked at Sasuke. He remembered then that as a younger sibling the boy was a member of the side branch and not entitled to the same privileges as himself. He knelt down in front of his brother.

"Sasuke. You will call me 'big brother'. We mustn't upset father or we will be punished. Do you understand?" Itachi's voice was serious.

Sasuke gave him a blank stare. "Yes Itachi."

Itachi suppressed a laugh. "Say 'Yes big brother'."

Sasuke gave him a big smile, showing all his cute little baby teeth. "Yes big brother!"

"Good boy!" He stood up and walked to the bathroom. He hoped Sasuke understood. The last thing he wanted was for their father to throw a fit over something as trivial as titles.

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"Shisui… I have a question for you." Itachi looked up at his cousin. He hadn't seen Shisui much lately. Both of them had been away on missions. The war with cloud was heating up again with frequent border skirmishes. Genin teams were busy transporting supplies, messages, and taking care of non-war missions.

"Hmm. You usually do, kid." Shisui and Itachi were currently walking on the main road outside of the village. They were on their way to meet with Madara.

"Don't call me 'kid'. You're only two and a half years older than me, remember?" Itachi said grumpily.

"Ha ha ha! I love bugging you." Shisui gave Itachi a big smile. "Now what did you want to know?"

"Do you know if Obito ever had to do something he didn't want to do?"

"I… What?"

"Like…kill someone?"

"Itachi, what's wrong?" Shisui stopped walking and put a hand on Itachi's shoulder to stop him.

"I had a dream. Obito said he was also forced to kill someone and he wasn't able to refuse." Itachi looked his cousin in the eye, but Shisui's face was now devoid of emotion.

"Drop it Itachi. Don't ask questions like that." Shisui turned around so that he faced away from Itachi.

"No. I want to know. Tell me."

"Itachi, Obito was Kagura's son. She was… 'old fashioned' in the way she raised him."

"Like my father?"

Shisui turned around quickly to face Itachi. "Who were you forced to kill? Was he a friend of yours?"

"Dr. Motoi." Itachi was starting to get mildly curious about his cousins behavior.

Shisui relaxed. "Good."

Itachi gave his cousin a puzzled look. "Madara and father both were there. They made me kill him. He should have been jailed."

"He was an enemy of the clan. Death was the correct punishment. In fact, I thought you had killed him because you wanted to."

"That was what they wanted me to say." It was quiet for a while and the boys continued their walk.

"Shisui? Why did you ask if it was a friend of mine? You are the only friend I have."

"No reason. Just asking. I…wasn't…I wasn't expecting you to be upset over Dr. Motoi. And… well there is Yota and Yuri and Kabuto. They're your friends too. It's just that you and me are 'best friends'. "

"Oh. So. About Obito? What do you know?" Itachi decided to press his cousin until he got an answer. The dream was bothering him and he had to know what happened.

"Itachi, I don't know. Just that the adults says things about how Kagura wanted her son to be more powerful and it was lucky he died when he did. We've talked about his before, remember?" Shisui stared at his younger cousin. Itachi's question didn't make any sense.

"Yes, and I keep getting the feeling that you are keeping something from me." Itachi was starting to loose his temper.

"Fine. If you want to hear it, just remember that we aren't supposed to know." Shisui was angry now. "Kagura, like my mother, was an expert with poisons. She taught Obito how to prepare and use them. She then used Obito to poison five prisoners arrested by Fugaku that Kentaro didn't want questioned. Also he killed about three other people who were under suspicion."

Itachi stared at Shisui in disbelief, they finally spoke. "You're lying."

Shisui punched Itachi in the stomach, sending the boy flying into the mud. He yelled angrily at his cousin. "What do you know? Do you have any idea what someone like Obito would have felt about doing that? Do you?"

Itachi yelled back. "Yes I do! He told me in my dream! It was real! He hated himself for it. He said he was weak because he couldn't say 'no'."

"Then maybe he should have said 'yes' instead. _I_ don't have any problem doing it!" Shisui's eye's opened wide as he suddenly realized what he had just said.

Itachi's eyes also opened wide. "What have you been doing, Shisui?" His voice was almost a whisper.

Madara interrupted them by jumping down from a tree. "So there you are. I was thinking the evil Orochimaru had gotten you." He stared at Shisui.

"Sorry. We were talking and lost track of the time." Shisui answered in a small voice.

"Humph. Shisui, I would like a word with you. Itachi, stay here." Madara's voice was quieter than usual.

"Yes." Itachi answered.

Shisui felt his stomach knot in anxiety as Madara led him a short distance away. He knew he had said too much and suspected the man had heard every single word.

"Shisui. You need to learn to keep your mouth shut. Itachi is unpredictable. If he looses it you cannot beat him."

"So says you." Shisui was still angry, despite his anxiety. Madara watched Itachi stand up and brush the mud off his pants; then perform a series of hand seals and put his hands over his ears. Madara smiled inside his mask.

"Your concern about who Itachi killed was heartwarming. You are a true friend indeed."

Shisui looked away from Madara. He truly had said too much and now the man was baiting him.

"'Best friends', I think was how you put it? Why would you ask if he killed a friend? Is Kabuto missing? Or perhaps Yota? Surely not the pretty little Yuri?" Madara waited to see if Shisui would answer, then continued.

"So. From what I heard a few minutes ago, you have figured out how to activate the Mangekyo Sharingan." Madara's voice was ominous, almost threatening.

Shisui remained silent. He didn't know if he should answer. His heart was pounding so hard he was sure Madara could hear it.

"Nothing to say? Then let me tell you how it is up front. If Itachi dies, and you are even one percent suspicious Fugaku will kill you. And if he doesn't, I will."

Shisui's gasped in fear at the thought of both Fugaku and Madara coming after him. It was true, he had found out about the Mangekyo Sharingan. He had snuck into the secret chamber in the temple and found the answer. But it was not an answer he wanted to see. It was evil. The requirement was more than he could comprehend and he dreaded the day when Itachi would also find out.

However, Madara's reaction was odd. He was, after all, raised with this knowledge. He actively supported it and guided his past students through it. Why was he acting like this? Despite his fear Shisui decided to push his luck a little and find out.

"So you either want neither of us to obtain Mangekyo or you want Itachi to. But either way, I am excluded."

"Or dead. Take your pick." Madara realized what the boy was doing and decided to play along.

Shisui didn't grab the bait. He laughed instead. "I will support my clan in any way necessary. If my death will give them the edge they need, then I will gladly throw myself on my own blade."

Madara frowned. He had not expected that answer. The young Uchiha truly had guts. "Shisui, your name may mean 'still water' but your life is more like a whirlpool. You are a little boy playing a man's game. Step aside and let the grown-ups play for a few more years. I guarantee it will be worth your while."

"Worth my while? How?" Shisui cocked his head to the side, smiling. Madara seemed to be contradicting himself.

"There is more than one way to obtain the Mangekyo Sharingan. The scroll you read in the temple is the easy way. There are other scrolls, hidden by jutsus that you cannot read. If you wait, and continue to follow me, I will open those scrolls for you and Itachi, and you both can stand together in power, and rule over Konoha."

Shisui blinked in shock. Another way? It was too good to be true. But Madara had never lied to him. Not that he knew of anyway. He sighed. It was worth a try anyway. "I will follow you, Madara. I want to see the other way. The way that means I won't have to kill Itachi."

"Good boy. You will not be disappointed." Madara smirked. He knew Itachi had been using a jutsu to listen in on their conversation and had heard every single word.

So now both boys knew about the Mangekyo Sharingan and he didn't have to lift a finger to tell them.

Perfect.

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**Next week Orochimaru makes a guest appearance and why is Madara so interested in talking to him?**

**I did a little Itachi and Sasuke fluff here. Hope you like it, they're cute together.**

**I think I made Itachi look a little wimpy in the last two chapters. I'll have to make up for that xD**

**Arghh! No Manga this week! Poor Sasuke…so many people plotting to get him. I'm probably the only person who doesn't think he's a traitor for leaving, either, because in doing so he tried to keep Naruto and Sakura away from Itachi. I have to wonder, at this point, what would Danzou have done to him if he stayed? By leaving did he unknowingly save his own life? My own speculation of course, don't hang me xD **


	27. Chapter 27 That Look

**Thanks for the reviews and fav's!**

**So – another question XD Madara being Sasuke's father is my invention (but I don't own the idea xD). I thought that Sasuke looked more like Madara than Fugaku, plus I needed to explain how Sasuke could be born when the clan has so few children. I decided there was a conception problem and used Madara – who was from a previous generation to "bridge the gap" so to speak. Merely a plot device. Madara still prefers Itachi, though, over his own son, as does Fugaku. But hey, the story still has a lot more chapters to go… Oh, and I also invented a past for Madara that includes a wife and kids even though I'm sure the manga will say he was single. It's not a big plot point, though.**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto.**

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**Chapter 27 – That Look**

Itachi watched as Shisui and Madara walked back down the road from where they had been talking. Shisui gave Itachi a half-hearted smile then stared at the ground. Itachi's emotionless gaze locked onto his cousin for a couple minutes, then moved to Madara.

"Do not let on to your father what you have learned here, Itachi." Madara put a hand on each of the boys' heads, splaying his fingers out so they wrapped around their craniums.

Shisui blinked in shock. "You… heard?"

Itachi didn't answer. He just continued to stand very still and moved his gaze from Madara back to Shisui. He didn't know what to think of the revelation regarding the Mangekyo Sharingan. Should he be shocked, upset, mad? Shisui had gone into the temple alone without even inviting him. He had learned information about the clan doujutsu without disclosing it to him. And the sacrifice… Itachi didn't understand completely but what he had gathered was that for some reason Shisui would have to kill him in order to get it. But… he said he didn't want to do it.

Several minutes passed.

"Itachi…say something." Shisui's quiet voice had a hint of pleading to it. Madara's grip on his head tightened and he winced.

Madara watched the two boys closely. Shisui was coming close to tears and Itachi was confused.

Shisui reached up and wiped his eyes with his sleeve. He couldn't bring himself to look his cousin in the eye so he continued to stare at the ground.

Itachi finally spoke. "What…what am I supposed to feel?" His voice was so low it could barely be heard.

Madara answered. "What do you want to feel?"

"What do you mean 'what do I want to feel'?" Itachi yelled. "How should I know?"

Madara smirked. He was greatly amused by the boys' awkwardness.

"Itachi…" Shisui sniffed. "Itachi. I would never have killed you. I couldn't. Never in a million years. That's why…that's why I didn't tell you what I found. But…but Madara said there's another way. We can both have Mangekyo. Both of us…" His voice trailed off as Itachi's face took on its blank countenance.

"Or, did you fear that I would kill you if you told me about it?" Itachi's voice was emotionless. He still didn't know what to think or what to feel.

Shisui opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again. That was exactly what he had feared. It was a subconscious fear, one he didn't even realize he had until Itachi had told him he had killed someone.

Itachi tried to look up at Madara, but the man's hand was still holding his head. "If there was another way to get it, then why didn't you say something? Why keep it a secret?"

Madara released their heads and walked a couple feet away. He leaned against a tree and crossed his arms. Shisui moved next to Itachi and put his hand on the younger boy's shoulder. He was afraid Itachi would get mad and try to attack Madara. Itachi looked up at his cousin in confusion, then returned his gaze to Madara.

"Because Fugaku doesn't know there's another way."

"So are you making it up then?" Itachi's voice started to rise again. Shisui tightened his grip.

"No, Itachi. I am not."

"Then tell us what it is!"

"No. Not until you have earned it."

Both Itachi and Shisui looked up at the tall man with confused expressions on their faces. As far as they were concerned Madara had just contradicted himself.

"Loyalty, boys. When I tell you to do something, you do it without question. And power. Uchiha has a reputation for strength and power that has been renowned and unmatched since the clan's founding. You are the heirs to that proud legacy and I will be observing you to see that you meet all the expectations that legacy implies. As you are now, eight and ten-year-old boys you must train both your bodies and minds to move forward. It will be many years before we can discuss this further. Mangekyo is not for the faint hearted."

Itachi and Shisui both nodded their heads in understanding. It made sense now. They had to work hard, train both their bodies and minds before they could be deemed worthy enough to obtain the clan's highest Sharingan.

"I'm glad you understand. Now, let's move over to the field I picked out for today's training. Now that Itachi has the Sharingan I will show you some techniques you two can use in tandem when fighting."

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Mikoto sat down on the grass bank overlooking a waterfall. It had finally stopped raining a week ago and the ground had dried out. She had left Sasuke at home with Itachi and gone out into the forest to look for some herbs. She wasn't planning on picking any, as it was still spring and the herbs wouldn't be mature until summer. Instead, she was looking to see where they were sprouting so that when she came back later she would have an idea where to look. As the season progressed other plants would grow up around the small herbs, hiding them from view.

The waterfall was about fifteen feet tall and nestled comfortably in the forest. Large stones littered the area and Mikoto had decided that the largest one would make a nice place to move to when she felt a presence. _His_ presence. She sat still and waited for him to show himself.

"Alone, Mikoto?" Mikoto jumped up at the almost-feminine voice as a man in jounin attire materialized in front of her. "Did you forget that I am still loose?"

"Orochimaru!" She spat the name out with such distaste that the snake-man frowned for a second before re-forming his skull-like smile.

"I wonder, where are the boys then? If you are here, and Fugaku is at the police station... are they… unprotected?" Orochimaru stood looking at her with his yellow eyes.

"If they are so unprotected, why don't you walk into the Uchiha compound and try to take them." Madara walked into the small clearing and stood in front of Mikoto.

"Madara, there is no need for you to be here. I do not need your protection. Leave." Mikoto spoke with venom as she activated her sharingan. She did not like the protective pose the elder Uchiha was maintaining in front of her.

"No. You might injure him. I think I have a use for this man and that would require him to remain in one piece." Madara smirked behind his mask. There was no doubt that a fight between Mikoto and Orochimaru would be worth watching. However, Mikoto was very powerful and while she may not be able to win the fight, she could no doubt inflict severe damage on the man.

"Humph. I heard about your little club, Madara. You won't get me as easily as you've been getting the others." Orochimaru laughed, then disappeared after forming a set of hand signs.

"You can leave me now, Madara." Mikoto glared at the man in front of her. He removed his mask and took a few steps toward her, stopping when he was a foot away. He stood there for several minutes looking at her. His next words were a trifle on the dramatic side, but Mikoto was too shocked to notice.

"I can never leave you, Mikoto. You are too beautiful. Too desirable. Our night together was something I will remember forever. Something I want to happen over and over again." He reached out and latched onto her arms, pulling her into his embrace he held her tightly. Lowering his face he pressed his lips to hers, kissing her with such passion that she forgot to struggle.

Finally pulling away he looked into her eyes. Defiance and fear looked back at him. If only it was passion and love, but he knew that would never happen. None of his women, even his long dead wife, had ever looked at him with love in their eyes. He was a powerful man. He exuded power and demanded loyalty without question. His women had treated him as nothing more than a prize they won, something to be bragged about to other women. He had to admit, though, that he treated them the same. Except for Mikoto.

Madara suddenly took two steps away from Mikoto and disappeared. Mikoto stepped back, shocked. The look in the man's eyes was full of emotion. Did he have feelings for her beyond lust? It couldn't be possible. He used people, then discarded them. She doubted he ever loved anyone. Yet that look. And the kiss. It was so different from his other kisses.

She had felt his chakra before Orochimaru had appeared. Did he come to see her, or was he following the snake-Sannin and she just happened to be in the way? Sitting back down on the ground she drew her knees up to her chest and rested her forehead on them. Fugaku had never looked at her like that. No one had.

"Is it possible… Is he in love with me?" The words came out of her mouth as a sigh, but she quickly sat up, shocked at what she had just said.

Standing up she brushed the leaves off her pants. Heading back to the village she decided not to mention the incident to Fugaku. At least, not until she thought it over some more.

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Three miles away Madara re-appeared in the forest and fell to his knees, clutching his head. "Shut up! Go back to sleep and don't bother me!" He started breathing heavily, as if he was struggling or fighting.

"I don't want to hear you!" Madara leaned forward and placed his head on the cold ground. He stayed like that for several minutes, feeling the cold dirt against his forehead.

The past was so far away, but at times like this he felt as if he could reach out and touch people long gone, hear their voices, and see their faces. The people he had fought for, the people who had betrayed him. His brother who had sacrificed everything, who had helped make him into the man he was now.

Sitting up again he sighed then removed his hands from his head. However he quickly became angry at himself for loosing control again.

"I showed weakness in front of that woman. What did she see when she looked into my eyes?" He remembered her look of shock right before he disappeared.

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"Pink!" Sasuke pointed his finger and looked up at Itachi.

Itachi, who had taken Sasuke to the park was too busy talking to Yota and Kabuto to look at what Sasuke was pointing at.

"Itachi!" Sasuke screeched to get his brother's attention and Yota covered his ears.

"Sasuke, shut-up! You are too loud." Itachi spoke sternly to the young boy.

Sasuke pouted. "I wanna go home!" He yelled.

Itachi put his hand up to his forehead, while Yota and Kabuto smiled.

"Okay Sasuke, what do you want." Itachi decided the best way to get around this was to give in.

"Pink!" Sasuke pointed again and the three boys followed his line of sight.

Kabuto smirked. "The Haruno girl and her mother. What was her name again?"

Yota answered. "Sakura. She's the same age as Sasuke, actually."

"Why don't you go over and say 'hi' to her?" Kabuto knelt down in front of the toddler and patted him on the head.

Sasuke looked up at his older brother. Itachi gave a short laugh. "Go ahead, Sasuke. But remember 'manners'. Don't scare her." The little girl was holding on to her mother's skirt and shyly watching the other children playing on the slide.

Sasuke grabbed Itachi's hand and started walking. Itachi stood still for a minute, but Yota and Kabuto waved him forward. Smiling he followed his brother to the little pink-haired girl.

"Hello. My name is Sasuke. How are you?" Itachi was shocked, the boy actually introduced himself properly. He privately wondered why Sasuke never remembered to call him "big brother", then decided he was doing it to be annoying.

Sasuke bowed, and when he stood up he reached out to the girl, but Itachi grabbed his hand. "It's not polite to touch people, Sasuke."

Sakura hid her face, but her mother smiled and knelt down. "What do you say, Sakura?" The woman had a kind voice.

Very faintly the girl answered, "Nice to meet you."

"Can I have pink hair too big brother?" Itachi cringed as he heard Kabuto and Yota fall to the ground laughing. He bowed deeply to the woman.

"I am sorry for my friend's behavior ma'am. We mean no insult." Itachi was worried, he didn't want a scene.

Mrs. Haruno laughed. "It's okay. I assume you are Itachi, then, if this is Sasuke."

Itachi nodded his head.

"I'll tell you a secret." She leaned forward from where she was kneeling, "The men in my clan dye their hair brown or black so they won't be teased. Believe me, we laugh about it all the time."

Itachi smiled, grateful that there was no embarrassment. However, he felt a familiar chakra source and turned his head. His father was leaning against a post at the entrance to the park. Itachi cringed.

Bowing again he bade the woman farewell and, taking Sasuke by the hand he walked slowly past his friends (who were still laying on the ground laughing) to his father. Who was very angry.

Quietly, Fugaku lead the two boys to a bench hidden in the trees. Helping Sasuke onto the bench Itachi turned to sit down next to him and found him knocked across the path when his father hit him. Sasuke's eyes opened wide in shock. Fugaku grabbed Itachi by the shirt.

"When I tell you that Sasuke is not to leave the compound it wasn't a god damned suggestion! It was an order! Orochimaru is out there and he would love to get his slimy hands on him!" He backhanded Itachi across the face and threw him down onto the ground, then kicked him hard in the rear end. "Stand up!"

Itachi gulped, breathing heavily, then stood up. Glancing at Sasuke he saw tears streaming out of the toddlers eyes. He prayed to god that the boy didn't make any sounds to attract their father's attention.

"Dammit Itachi! This is not what I expected from you. I am extremely disappointed. You know how precious children are in our clan. There are only three of you, and here you are putting the youngest, most defenseless of the children in mortal danger! What the hell would we do if he were killed? Did you even think of that?"

Itachi dropped down to his knees and pressed his forehead to the ground. "I'm sorry father. I thought the park would be safe. I was wrong."

Fugaku bent down and picked up Sasuke, who cringed at his father's touch. "I will return Sasuke to the compound. You will follow me. And since you insist on acting like an irresponsible child instead of a Genin you are restricted to the house until your next mission."

Itachi stood up, but kept his eyes on the ground. "Yes father."

Four hours later Itachi was sitting on the floor in his room. He was sore all over. His mother, who had seemed distracted when she had come home thirty minutes earlier, had quickly become angered when Fugaku told her what had happened. He wiped the tears from his eyes, cringing as he felt a twinge of pain in his shoulder where his mother had grabbed him. He hurt all over. Mikoto could be harsh when she wanted to be.

"Itachi! Turn the light out and get in bed!" Mikoto yelled at her son through the closed door.

Getting up he put out the light and climbed into bed. Wiping his eyes again he expected he wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. However, he quickly nodded off anyway.

_The darkness was overwhelming, punctured only by a red sky. A white face with yellow eyes and a long snake tongue stood over a fallen teenager. He laughed and he picked the boy up. Turning slightly, the boy was illuminated by the glow of a red moon. There was a round seal on the boy's shoulder and the face…_

"Itachi! Itachi! Wake up!" Fugaku was holding Itachi's shoulders and shaking him, yelling loudly in his ear.

"Is he okay? Should I get his medication?" Mikoto was hovering nearby, worriedly wringing her hands. "Maybe I shouldn't have beaten him. He's hysterical!"

Itachi opened his eyes and the first thing he noticed was that he was standing in the living room and his throat was hoarse.

"Lord Fugaku! Is everything okay?" Three neighbors rushed in through the sliding door. They were very worried.

Fugaku stood up, picking Itachi up as he did. "Yes, Itachi appears to have had another nightmare. We'll give him some medication and he should be okay. You may leave."

The three men bowed and left.

"Father…what happened?" Itachi could barely speak, his throat hurt so bad.

"You were in here screaming. We couldn't wake you up." Mikoto brushed Itachi's long hair out of his face. His screams had been terrifying and Mikoto and Fugaku had truly thought he was being tortured when the sound woke them up. Rushing out of their bedroom they found that the boy had sleepwalked into the living room and was standing stock still with his eyes wide open, screaming.

"I'll get your pills, Itachi, wait right here." She rushed off to the bathroom.

Itachi looked at his father, who was still holding him. Fugaku's face was creased with worry. "I dreamed…I dreamed…" He pushed himself out of Fugaku's arms and onto the floor.

"Sasuke! Is Sasuke okay?" He raced down the hall the toddlers room and threw the door open. Sasuke was missing.

"He's gone! It's all my fault! He took him!" Itachi started to panic, and fell to the floor crying.

"Itachi, he's fine. He's hiding under the bed. All you did was scare him a little. Take a look." Fugaku sat on the bed and frowned. Although Itachi was upset right now, he should still be more aware of his surroundings.

Itachi stopped crying and sniffled as he turned his head from his position on the floor and saw two eyes staring back at him. Stretching out his hand toward the boy, he smiled as Sasuke crawled out slowly to where his brother was sitting. Fugaku picked him up quickly and put him back in his bed.

"Here, Itachi, take two of these, it'll help you calm down." Mikoto handed a glass of water and two small green pills to Itachi after he stood up. Swallowing the pills he breathed deeply. The dream had been so real.

Itachi looked at his parents then walked out of Sasuke's room and back to his own. He was now trembling badly and his teeth were chattering. Fugaku followed Itachi into his room, but stopped when he saw his son standing stock still instead of continuing on to the bed. Looking up he saw Madara reach for a folded blanket and wrap it around Itachi.

"Tell us about your dream, Itachi." Madara's deep voice seemed to echo in the still silence of the early morning. Mikoto quickly rushed into the room, looking at the masked man in shock. Fugaku motioned for her to be quiet. She nodded, then, after giving Madara a questioning look, left the room to return to Sasuke.

"Sasuke was a teenager and he was unconscious on the ground and he had a seal on his shoulder. Orochimaru picked him up and took him away." Itachi was starting to relax as the pills took effect, although he was still trembling. His words were punctuated by chattering teeth, but the two men still understood him.

"Itachi. Orochimaru will no longer be a problem after tomorrow." Madara turned around and looked out of the window.

"Are you going to kill him?" Itachi said hopefully.

"No. I have other uses for him. Those uses will prevent him from coming close to you. At least until you are stronger. At this moment he is running from the Hokage."

That caught Fugaku's attention. "Running?"

Madara smirked. "Sarutobi finally got the balls to have ANBU invade Orochimaru's little lab, but he fell short and let the man go instead of killing him."

"God damn bastard. That man is about as close to being 'Hokage' material as…" Fugaku sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Why did he get chosen anyway?" Looking down at Itachi he noticed that the boy had finally stopped shaking and was swaying a little.

"Itachi, you should go to bed now." Fugaku pushed his son toward the bed and helped him in when his leg slipped on the edge of the mattress. Itachi was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

Madara gave a short laugh. "They are cute when they're young. But back to your comment from a minute ago. Do you really hate Sarutobi that much? It doesn't sound like you."

"Then you know nothing about me. I have never liked him. The Fourth was ten times the man Sarutobi is. Unfortunately your little Kyuubi invasion killed him, and everyone now thinks it was us who did it. Not you. Our credibility has taken a massive hit." Fugaku stared at the taller man with a distasteful look on his face.

"Well then, Fugaku, I believe I _have_ underestimated you. There may be a solution to both our problems here. A way to restore your credibility and a way for me to restore Uchiha to what it was before the founding of Konoha. I will return once I have thought more about this." He disappeared into the ground.

"Take your time, Madara. Your plans have always failed, in case you never noticed." Fugaku checked Itachi once more, making sure he was warm enough and his pulse was normal, then left the room. Shaking his head he wondered at the guilt trip the boy must have had when his subconscious invented that dream. Perhaps they had laid it on him a little thick. He obviously understood what he had done was wrong.

"I feel bad, Fugaku." Mikoto caught up with him a few minutes later in their room. "I overreacted. I shouldn't have hit him."

"Yeah. Tell him when he wakes up he's not on restriction. He can come and go as usual."

"Sasuke wants pink hair." Mikoto watched in alarm as Fugaku started coughing.

"He wants what!" He finally said, weakly.

"He met a little girl with pink hair. Don't worry, he'll forget all about it by tomorrow." Mikoto gave a weak laugh.

"Oh. Haruno. I saw a mother and daughter today…er…yesterday. The girl appears to have average chakra, I wonder if she will be enrolled in the academy? None of the Haruno women have ever become Kunoichi for some reason. I imagine she would be a classmate of Sasuke's." His voice returned to normal and he gave his wife a look that told her that her little joke worked, he felt a little more relaxed.

"Hmm. Not many little girls want to become Kunoichi anyway. Getting killed as a career doesn't sound like as much fun as staying alive. But as a woman, I have to say, I wish there were more kunoichi." Mikoto smiled, then gave a short laugh.

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The morning sun broke over the distant hills, bathing the spring ground in bright sunlight. Orochimaru sneered as he dropped to the ground to catch his breath. He was sure Sarutobi hadn't sent anyone after him. The coward was way too sentimental. He gave a short laugh. That would be his undoing, eventually.

The problem Orochimaru now faced was Jiraiya, his old teammate. No doubt he would be informed of the incident and come after him. He was just as much a sentimental fool as Sarutobi. Standing up he looked around, getting a hold of his bearings. South would probably be a good direction to head. He had a lab set up down there and…

Orochimaru crouched down, suddenly alerted by a foreign chakra. Wait, it wasn't foreign. "Madara!" The snake Sannin snarled, "Show yourself!"

"Orochimaru. One of the three great Sannin. You are my next recruit. Do you accept the position?" Madara appeared out of the ground.

"Leave me alone!" He extended his snake jutsu through his sleeves and aimed them at Madara's torso. However, they passed straight through the man.

"That won't work on me." Madara taunted.

"What did you just do? Was that a jutsu, or some kind of summoning?" Orochimaru studied the now solid man looking for some kind of hint of what happened.

"Hmm. I don't think I want to tell you that." Madara mocked.

Orochimaru sent his snake jutsu forward again, watching carefully as they passed, once again, through the man in front of him. He noted that only the part of the body affected disappeared. The rest of his body stayed in one place.

"I have heard that Uchiha are excellent at transportation and flicker jutsus." Orochimaru was now more interested in learning the secret of Madara's jutsu than fighting him.

"Orochimaru, you are so predictable. Do you really think learning all the jutsu in the world will make you powerful? You are nothing in the face of Uchiha." Madara goaded the man's ego.

"Humph. I will learn all those jutsu, and you and I will meet on the battlefield. Then we will see who is the most powerful."

"You can't do that if you're dead." Madara appeared behind Orochimaru and spoke into his ear, then disappeared and reappeared ten feet in front of him.

Orochimaru smiled, his lips stretching across his pasty white skin in a sneer. "I can see no benefit to joining your little club. I have dedicated my life to research, not nail painting."

"Odd, considering you usually walk around in a kimono. I would have thought painted nails would be right up your alley. In fact, I told the others you would give them some hints on preventing the enamel from cracking. There were _so_ looking forward to it." Madara laughed as Orochimaru frowned for a second, the regained his composure and smiled again.

"What are you? Six?" Orochimaru was getting tired of the man's taunts.

Madara laughed. "I'll tell you what, you join my little club, and I won't kill you. Also, you will be free to carry on your research. However, I will expect you to turn out for missions."

"I thought you were going to wait for me." A scratchy, deep voice was accompanied by an oval contraption that, with the help of chakra, skidded across the forest floor.

"Sasori. Glad to see you. Let me introduce your new partner." Madara extended his hand to point to Orochimaru.

Sasori appeared to look the man over. "I don't like him."

"Just fight him, Sasori. Orochimaru, if you win you may leave and I will not contact you again. If you lose, you will join the organization."

"I don't agree to that!" Orochimaru spat at the masked man.

"I don't give a damn." Madara laughed.

Sasori sighed. The faster he got this over with, the sooner he could leave these two ingrates. Unrolling a scroll he activated his most powerful puppet. The corpse of a past Kazekage of the village hidden in the Sand.

Orochimaru released his snake hands again and shot them towards Sasori. Hitting their mark he wrapped the snakes around Sasori's "body". Sasori moved his fingers, attaching chakra strings to the Kazekage puppet. Sand rose up out of the ground, and coalesced in the air over Orochimaru. He looked around, wondering what was going on.

Quickly the sand formed into iron bands that wrapped around Orochimaru's torso, much like the snake hands were wrapped around Sasori.

"So if we both squeeze, who will die first? You, who are flesh and blood… Or me… who is so much more?" Sasori was getting bored.

Orochimaru closed his eyes. He knew what Sasori was. If he crushed the puppet body the man used to travel in it would not injure him enough to ensure a victory. However, the iron bands wrapped around his torso would cut him in half. Unlike Madara, he would die if that happened.

He had lost. Five seconds into the fight and he had lost. He was not used to loosing. Orochimaru, the great Sannin, one of the three great Sannin, lost. Sneering, he addressed Madara, "I had better be allowed to continue my research or so help me I will find a way to make your life a living hell."

Sasori dropped his fingers and turned the iron bands back into sand, allowing it to drop back into the ground. "I guess that means the fight is over and I won."

"You two will be partners, so don't kill each other too much. Sasori will fill you in on the particulars, Orochimaru." Madara smirked. "Welcome to the organization. Your skills will be invaluable." He disappeared.

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"I have him now, Pein." Madara walked out onto an overhang on top of a large building. A tall orange haired man with several facial piercings turned to face him.

"I am not fond of that man. But I will trust your judgment in this."

"I understand." Madara knew that when Pein had first met Orochimaru he had said that killing the young orphan would be the kindest thing to do. Of course, the young orphan and his two friends did not want to die and had disliked the snake man instantly.

"Pein. I also have a bad feeling about Orochimaru. I also know that he will be useful." Madara looked out over the edge of the building at the falling rain.

"Then I will wait and see what happens. Sasori is not a patient man, however, Orochimaru may be dead soon."

"I have also found a way to get Fugaku's attention. It turns out he and I have a common ground. We both hate the Third Hokage. I believe I can use that information to my advantage." Madara laughed. Things were fitting together nicely.

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**Please review!**

**A special guest appearance by one of my favorite characters – Sakura. She won't play an important part of the story, but since it's a small village it is safe to say that Sasuke would have seen her around before enrolling in school, even if he didn't remember it. Besides it was an excuse for some cute Itachi – Sasuke interaction.**

**Updates every Friday!**


	28. Chapter 28 Distrust

**Thanks for all the reviews! **

**Last week Itachi and Shisui discovered the Mangekyou Sharingan's secret, Mikoto and Madara meet again (and Mikoto begins to suspect Madara has feelings for her), and Orochimaru and Sasori fought.**

**Okay – someone (the wonderful Erendhyl who left me so many wonderful reviews XD) noticed that I got Itachi's birthday wrong. I was wondering when that would happen. You see, I couldn't find his birth date when I was doing up the initial outline so I picked one. Then a few weeks later I found a great website that has all this wonderful Naruto trivia and there is was! I just hope no one notices I have Itachi starting school when he was five instead of six, then I'm really in trouble _ **

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto.**

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**Chapter 28 – Distrust**

The news spread fast throughout the village hidden in the Leaves. Within an hour every genin not away on a mission had heard: the Chuunin exams were cancelled because the ninja needed to proctor the exams were away on missions. This left a lot of disappointed Genin. Including Itachi, who ripped the message up moments after reading it, then set it on fire. Considering he was still standing inside the house's entryway Mikoto was not happy either and suggested to her eldest son that the next time he should at least walk out of the house, onto the porch, down the stairs and onto the stone pathway the next time he decided to burn his "love letters".

Itachi stood staring at his mother in shock for a few seconds. "It wasn't a love letter mother. I'm only eight."

Mikoto smiled. She could see Itachi was upset but she didn't want him burning the house down either. "What was it?"

"They cancelled the Chuunin exams."

"I didn't know you were planning on taking them."

"Yurina wants us to move up in rank so we can do more missions and father just wants me to move up."

"Oh." Well, she should have known Fugaku would want that. "Your father, I daresay, is going to be madder than you. He's probably finding out right now as we speak."

"I'm going to go look for Yota and Yuri then." Itachi didn't want to deal with a pissed off Fugaku. Mikoto smiled in silent understanding and went back to the living room.

It turned out Itachi didn't have to walk far to find his teammates. They had just walked through the gate at the front entrance of the Uchiha compound when Itachi found them.

"Hey! I take it you heard?" Yota said, clapping the younger boy on the shoulder.

"Yeah. Let's get out of here. Go to the river or something." Itachi started walking away from the compound.

Yuri looked behind her at the Uchiha residences. "Why are you guys clear over on this side of the village? The other clans are closer to the Hokage's tower."

"Yeah. I've wondered that too." Yota spoke up.

Itachi frowned in concentration. "I don't know. I guess I never noticed. You are right, though. The other clans are grouped near the tower. The people around here are civilian. They're okay, though. They shop in our stores and some work at the police station. The other villagers call us names sometimes, but these guys don't.

"I guess it's a good place to live then." Yuri smiled, but she was still suspicious. "Itachi, my uncle thinks you all are being separated from the rest of the village. Is that true?"

Again Itachi thought hard. He couldn't remember his parents or anyone else saying anything like that. "Not that I've heard."

After a few minutes of walking they reached a small park next to the river. Kabuto and Shisui were already there so they decided to join them. Everyone sat on the stone wall that ran next to the river.

"December is cold, isn't it?" Kabuto pulled out a pair of gloves and slipped them on. "Did you tell them yet?" He addressed Yota.

"No." Yota answered, frowning.

"Why aren't you in school?" Itachi asked. Kabuto was still a student since Sasori had not given him permission to graduate yet.

"Yota and I discovered something that we had to pass on to you guys. And I was bored and didn't feel like going today." Kabuto looked over at Itachi.

Shisui hadn't said anything. He looked like he was sulking.

Kabuto noticed Itachi's gaze. "Oh, he's sulking over the exam, but believe me, when he hears this news he will be twice as sulky."

"They get on with it you little prick!" Shisui said angrily.

Kabuto smirked. He loved to piss people off. However, his smiled quickly faded. His news wasn't good, after all, and even though it didn't affect him personally, it still bugged him.

Kabuto spoke quietly, "The rumor, which Yota and I are positive is true is that the exam was cancelled because the Konoha elder council doesn't want Uchiha to participate."

Itachi and Shisui felt like they had just been slapped in the face. For a full minute both boys looked each other in the eyes then stood up and started walking away.

"Where are you going?" Yota asked.

Shisui answered, almost snarling, "To speak with Lord Fugaku." The months they had been expelled from school because the villagers were afraid of the Uchiha children being near their children suddenly came back in his mind. This was just too much.

Itachi watched as Shisui walked in front of him. In all the years he had known him he had never seen his cousin this angry. He knew Shisui had been training for the exam hard since summer. Itachi had too, but for some reason the news of the cancellation, while pissing him off, didn't induce the blind anger that now engulfed Shisui.

Suddenly Shisui stopped walking. Itachi, who was still lost in his own thoughts bumped into him and stumbled backwards a few steps.

"Sorry." Itachi mumbled.

Shisui sighed. "I need to calm down before I go barging into your father's office."

"Okay." Itachi closed his eyes and looked up at the weak December sun. The red glow he saw on the inside of his eyelids was comforting, even if the sun cast no heat over his skin.

Shisui was right though. Fugaku would have heard the news already and if they barged in while he was in a bad mood they needed to be calm and on their toes. A mad Fugaku spelled trouble. Itachi knew that first hand.

Taking a deep breath Shisui started to walk forward again. This time he was closer to his normal self, as was Itachi.

Entering the police station the Uchiha woman who was currently in charge of reception held up her finger to tell the two boys to wait. She pulled out a wireless radio and spoke into it.

"I have found the two boys, Captain. I'll send them right over." She sounded slightly irritated.

Fugaku's voice came over the radio. "Thanks."

The woman turned her attention back to the boys. "The Uchiha elders have called a meeting to discuss the Chuunin exam. Your presence is required at the temple." Her face softened and she gave the boys a bittersweet smile. "I'm sorry it was cancelled. You don't deserve to be treated that way."

"Thank-you." The boys both bowed and ran as fast as they could to the temple.

"Have a seat." The elder standing at the door directed the boys to two mats that were set apart and to the left of the mats the elders sat on. Fugaku sat at the front of the room on a small dais. Feeling self-conscious, Itachi and Shisui quickly removed their shoes then walked quietly to their mats. Shisui waited for Itachi to sit first, as per clan status, then he sat down behind him and to the right. Both boys wondered why the meeting was so formal.

The elder at the door cast a genjutsu around the temple to disguise it. To any passers-by or spies the temple would look and sound as deserted as it normally was on a week-day morning.

"The exams have been cancelled." Fugaku was silent for a couple minutes.

Shisui steeled his nerves and spoke. "Is it because of us, my Lord?" Itachi nodded once, indicated he had the same question.

One of the elders spoke, "How could they have heard already? It was a closed meeting."

Fugaku smiled inwardly. He had seen Kabuto earlier that morning near the Hokage's tower. Ever since Kabuto had "accidentally found" Itachi after he had been kidnapped he had been suspicious of the boy. However, since Itachi and Shisui often hung out with Kabuto he had decided to watch instead of act. Obviously Madara had spies within the village and Kabuto was probably one of them.

The clan lord spoke, "Rumors are rumors. What matters here is that our boys understand what is going on. Lord Itachi, Lord Shisui, the Hokage was pressured by the council to disqualify you from the Chuunin exams because they fear us. He tried to negotiate for one of you to participate, he even offered to let them choose the one, but they refused to back down.

"Sarutobi then decided that if they were going to excluded based on clan affiliation then he would cancel the entire exam. He then told them that there will be no Chuunin exam until Uchiha are allowed to participate.

"While this may sound like a vote of support on the surface, underneath it is nothing of the sort. The council will no doubt spread the word among the other clans and villagers that we are preventing their children from moving up the ranks.

"Be prepared. There will be a lot of flack from this. No doubt aimed at you two." Fugaku looked over at the two children. They returned his gaze, but their faces were a mixture of outrage, sorrow and determination.

"Lord Fugaku?" Itachi spoke up.

"Yes?"

"I heard…is it true we are separated from the other clans on purpose? I mean, we live here by the lake and the others are by the Hokage's tower."

Shisui stared at his cousins back. He had never realized that before.

Fugaku and several of the elders scowled, a few of them whispered to each other in angry voices.

"It depends on how you look at it. Madara and the first Hokage were good friends when the village was planned out. Uchiha was given the largest area, encompassing an entire lake and the land around it. The other clans were give a quarter the area, some even less or none.

"We have a beautiful, spacious compound that is easily defended and extremely private. Many other Uchiha are proud of that and say we should be grateful for the friendship shown by the First Hokage and not look a gift horse in the eye."

Shisui spoke before thinking, "Was the gift horse Greek?"

Several of the elders laughed, causing Shisui to blush, "I'm sorry my Lord, I spoke out of turn." He bowed forward a few inches to show his apology.

Fugaku smiled slightly, as did Itachi. He was surprised Itachi got the joke, but then the boy did read a lot, and the "Trojan Horse" was a popular plot device.

"Ah, Shisui, if we knew that we wouldn't be in here right now." Fugaku answered.

"Lord Fugaku, what did Madara think?" Itachi wasn't sure he should mention his teacher, but since they were talking about the founding of Konoha he figured it would be okay.

The elders muttered amongst themselves.

"To him, a the clan leader of a powerful warrior clan, being removed so far from the center of authority was seen as a slap in the face." Fugaku gave a short answer.

"What do you think it is, Lord Itachi?" One of the elders asked.

Itachi was a little taken aback. He thought for a minute. He liked his home. The lake was his favorite place. The trees surrounding the various walls, fences, and gardens were tall, and they were near the village gates. But…

"I guess I don't understand, then. I like it here. I think the First gave us the best spot in the village."

Several of the elders scowled and whispered to each other again. Itachi sensed that he had given the wrong answer.

"I believe Lord Itachi does not understand the situation, Lord Fugaku. Lord Itachi, if you were placed in a jail and given everything you ever wanted except your freedom, would it be any less of a jail?"

Itachi didn't feel like he was in a jail. He could come and go as he pleased. Looking at his father he saw Fugaku purse his lips and look at the floor. He got the message. He was not to answer the question.

The boy bowed his head in an expression of humility, thus making the elder back off from his little "impromptu" lesson.

"Boys," Fugaku quickly changed the subject. "You will both be required to attend clan meetings from now on. Normally the honor would come when you advance to the Chuunin level, but as I have no doubt you both would have passed were the test held the elders and I see no reason to exclude you until the Hokage and his council get their act together."

Both boys bowed forward in gratitude. "Thank-you."

"You will be told in advance of the meetings. For security reasons they are planned only hours in advance. This meeting is over, you may all go."

Itachi and Shisui left as quickly as they politely could. Itachi didn't want another discussion about segregation and Shisui just wanted to get away so he could think about what Fugaku had said.

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That evening Itachi was on the porch reading when Fugaku sat next to him. The evening was very cold, but it was also silent and bright winter stars glittered like diamonds. It was a perfect night to sit outside and read.

"Itachi." Fugaku broke the silence with his strong voice. "Things are changing in our clan. You saw some of it this morning. That Uchiha have been discriminated against and scape-goated cannot be denied. But they have also been given favored status and praised. You can call this a part of life and accept it, or forge your own path. The council is calling for a new path and they want me to forge it."

Itachi looked up at his father. Suddenly he had a flashback of his clan indoctrination ceremony and the sick feeling he had felt from his nervousness. He remembered the oath he sword to protect his cousins or die. He suddenly felt very small.

"So…what are you going to do?" Itachi's high pitched child's voice was a little higher pitched than normal.

"Wait. For now. And watch. With Madara wandering around free out there we shouldn't do anything. He might take it as a chance to stir up trouble again. However, I can't wait for long. I have no idea what I want to do, so I need to think about it some more." He looked down at his son and noticed his nervousness. "Take your pills before you go to bed tonight, Itachi." He got up and walked away.

Itachi watched the star-filled sky for several more minutes, wondering what his father was up to. What did the clan want? Did they want to leave? If that was it why didn't they just remain at the Uchiha Hideout last year when Dr. Motoi had caused his ruckus? What was his father going to do? And why did he bother to tell him about it if he didn't know what he was going to do?

A sudden feeling of helplessness passed over the small boy and he looked up at the cold stars. Glancing over at the lake he could see a lone figure standing silently, also looking at the stars. It was Shisui. He watched as the older boy sat down with his back against a large rock and put his head on his knees. Itachi activated his Sharingan and saw that his cousin was crying. He quickly de-activated his eye-jutsu and frowned. Even though they were surrounded by family, inside the boundaries of a clan, they were both very much alone.

Not knowing what else to do, Itachi went back to reading his book.

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The next afternoon found Itachi in a remote training field outside of the village. He had taken off alone before dawn after spending half the night worrying about everything and anything. He couldn't explain it, he just felt _anxious_ about something. He was afraid his mother or father would notice and make him take some pills. He hadn't taken any before going to bed, disobeying his father. Leaving early before they got up seemed the best way to work out his problems without their "help". Not that they were really any help to begin with.

It had been trying to snow all day, but so far only a few flakes had shown themselves. The heavily overcast sky and freezing temperatures made training a little harder than usual. Itachi found himself wishing he had brought a thermos of tea. The closest he got to it was when he heated some water for his lunch of instant ramen, and drank what he didn't pour into the carton.

Itachi was practicing thrust exercises with his katana. He was beginning to suspect it was too small for him. It was the same one he received as a present on his fourth birthday. In three months he would be nine. He stopped and looked at his sword again. The best swords came from the village hidden in the Mist. How would he get a katana from a village that detested Konoha? When it came to weapons, Itachi decided he wanted the best.

"Well hello there, little boy." Four men walked out of the woods and approached Itachi. "Where's your mommy and daddy?"

Itachi was not in the mood for this. He hated to be treated like a little kid.

"I ran out of diapers so they went to get me more." Itachi's sarcastic answer took the men by surprise.

"A smartass huh? We'll take care of that soon enough." The four men got into fighting stances and Itachi noticed their forehead protectors.

"What are ninja from Cloud doing here?" He asked in alarm.

"Oh, you know, this little thing called a war? Sound familiar?" These guys were becoming very annoying. "You come with us quietly and you won't get hurt."

"Oh, big and scary man, where are you going to take me?" Itachi quickly activated a genjutsu and created several clones of a generic adult jounin. The four Cloud ninja looked around then, then attacked the clones. They quickly dissipated. However, that gave Itachi the chance to activate his Sharingan and attack them from behind. He was able to sever the spinal column of the closest ninja, but the other three heard the man's cry of alarm and realized what the boy had done.

Itachi jumped away. The three men looked at him, scowling.

"So you do have the Sharingan already. Our sources were accurate for once. You can't beat all of us kid. Come along quietly." One of the men spoke up in a stern, commanding voice.

The three men attacked simultaneously but Itachi's speed, combined with his Sharingan allowed him to get out of the way. He pulled out several throwing stars and ran back toward the enemy shinobi. When he got within six feet he jumped into the air, then quickly executed a Genjutsu that hid his body and chakra from view. Throwing the stars as he arced over the ninjas he watched as all three were hit. As Itachi dropped back down to the ground he noticed that one of the ninja's collapsed and didn't get back up.

"Genjutsu too, how impressive. By the way, little boy, we don't need you alive. Only your head. We get more money if you're alive, but hey, I'll substitute convenience for some coins any day." One of the remaining ninjas was very smug for a man who had just seen two companions die by the hand of an eight-year-old.

Itachi smirked. "Odd. I don't your need bodies either. Lord Hokage will be glad to pay me for your heads. A coincidence, huh?"

The Cloud and Konoha ninjas stood and stared at each other for a few minutes. Itachi suddenly felt someone grab him from behind. Alarmed he struggled but the Cloud nin behind him had his collar in one hand and his wrists in another. Itachi tried to kick, but the man maneuvered the boy so that his legs trapped the boy's knees. This position lifted Itachi up off the ground and his head faced the ground. His collar was cutting into his neck and while he could still breathe, it was uncomfortable and Itachi noticed that if he struggled he felt his windpipe constrict. It also made the man bend over about a foot.

"You're not going anywhere now, boy." He laughed, then looked over at the other ninja. "Slit his throat. I don't feel like carrying him back alive."

"You don't need to tell me twice." The other ninja pulled two kunai and walked forward. When he got a foot away from the captor and the captive he slashed with both kunai, slitting their throats at the same time.

Shock registered in the face of the Cloud ninja as the Genjutsu wore off. He hadn't captured Itachi, it was his teammate. And the man he thought was his teammate was actually Itachi.

Itachi watched the two men as they suffocated. He had quickly thought up the plan from a lesson Madara had taught him on substitution jutsus. If it works for logs, then why can't it work on a person? As soon as he had been grabbed he had used a substitution jutsu and left a clone in the man's grip. He then cast a genjutsu, causing the man to let go of the clone and grab his teammate instead. He had done it in the instant he wrapped his legs around his "captive". His teammate had tried to get away, to break the Genjutsu (for some reason Itachi didn't understand it didn't work on him) but he was unsuccessful.

Sighing he stood up and looked at the four dead ninjas. There were planning on kidnapping him. He remembered that it was cloud ninja who had tried to kidnap Shisui as well. Would they come for Sasuke next? He felt a twinge of fear, then remembered that Sasuke was with his mother. The toddler was safe.

Itachi severed the four heads and wrapped them in the chakra enhanced plastic bags. He had a package of twenty so he was quite proud of himself as he counted the sixteen remaining bags. He looked forward to the day when he would have finished all of them, imagining himself walking into the ninja supply store asking for another package. However, carrying four heads would be heavy and he was forty-five minutes from Konoha, and he had to take the heads to the Hokage.

No. He would take them to his father first. He wanted credit for this kill and he had a feeling after yesterday that it might be covered up if he went directly to the Hokage. Besides, he wanted to show off to his father what he had done.

Itachi found a strong branch and tied two heads to each end then, putting the branch over his shoulders, started walking back to town. When he entered the main gate the duty ninja noted the cloud forehead protectors and made Itachi show him on a map where the attack took place. He then sent word to have a ninja team surround the area to look for more enemies.

When Itachi entered the police station he quickly became the center of attention. His father was out on a call, but the man at the reception desk radioed him and told him his son had a surprise for him, and he'd better return quick.

The police photographer took a few pictures while a couple others looked through bingo books to identify the heads, and another took a statement from the boy about what happened. Itachi was very happy, his earlier anxiety had completely vanished.

The door opened and Fugaku walked into the station, stood still, stunned by what he saw. His eight-year-old son was standing next to a table with four severed heads. He couldn't have gotten all of them. There was no way. Was there?

"Itachi?" Fugaku's voice was a little weaker than usual. "Is this you're doing?"

Itachi gave his father a big smile. "Yes father! I got them all. They wanted to kidnap me and take me back to Cloud. But I killed _them_ first."

Fugaku gulped. He felt a jolt of fear pass through him. He recognized two of the heads. They were high ranking jounin. "Itachi… please… did you really take these men by yourself?"

Itachi's smiled disappeared. "Yes father. I did. What's wrong?" The room went silent.

Fugaku grabbed the bingo book the two policemen were still thumbing through and turned the page to the back of the book. "Read." He handed the book to Itachi.

"Jounin in the personal service of the village hidden in the Cloud's Kage. Wanted for the murder of fifteen Jounin, forty-eight Chuunin and fifteen Genin. Reward 200,000 ryou's." Itachi read the page out loud, but his voice took on more of a shocked tone the further down the page he got.

"Now, I'll ask you one more time. Did you really kill these men?" Fugaku wanted to hear that the boy did not. He wanted to hear that Itachi had found the bodies, maybe even half dead. He did not want to hear that Itachi, of all people, was now powerful enough to take out a Jounin. Even though he knew, deep down, that this day would come.

Itachi was confused. He thought his father would be happy. He rarely sought praise for anything, and now, the one time he did this is what he got.

Frowning Itachi bowed forward. "I am sorry father, if I did something wrong. I did kill them. I will take them to the Hokage now so you don't have to deal with it." He reached over the table to grab the plastic, but his hand was stopped by his father's.

Fugaku looked down at the boy with a sad expression on his face. He dearly wished Kentaro was still alive. He needed the old man's advice right now. Then another thought drifted through his mind. 'What will Madara think of this? Itachi is clearly showing the same abilities he did at that age. Is he expecting this? Or will he see the boy as his rival?' If Madara killed the boy out of jealously then his plan to use Itachi to kill Madara would fail.

Sighing, he knelt down in front of Itachi and looked him in the eyes. "You are truly my son Itachi. I am proud of you. I…you just have to understand how amazing it is that you, a young boy, were able to take out these men. It defies the imagination, truly."

Itachi smiled again, "They underestimated me, father. It put them off guard."

Fugaku laughed. "The bane of all Jounin. Arrogance. Well, let's get these to the Hokage. I'll go with you Itachi, to make sure you get paid."

The mood in the room lightened again and everyone congratulated Itachi once more as he and his father walked back out onto the street.

It turned out the Hokage was waiting for them. He had received word from the front gate while he was in a meeting and immediately cancelled it, shooing everyone out of his office.

"Well, Itachi, you have done an excellent job. I am very proud of you." The Hokage looked over the heads carefully. He was amazed at how much the boy had advanced and wished he had been able to see the fight.

"Thank-you, Lord Hokage." Itachi bowed.

The Hokage put his hands behind his back and looked at Fugaku. "So. Cloud has made a move on two of the three Uchiha children. I expect they won't try for the third. They tried to grab Hiashi's daughter last summer, he killed the perpetrator. It was during the supposed 'peace treaty' meeting and their Kage did it on his own. I'm surprised they tried again."

Fugaku frowned. "I heard."

"Everything?" Sarutobi looked hard at the Uchiha clan leader standing in front of him.

"Everything."

Sarutobi wondered how the Uchiha gathered their information. They seemed to have as good of a spy network as he did. Considering how insular they were it was nothing short of amazing. Of course, running the police station gave them access to people and places all over the village.

The Hokage changed the subject. He didn't want things to get uncomfortable in front of Itachi. "Well, Fugaku, Itachi, I wanted to find the two genin teams long term missions as a peace offering, but it seems there are none right now. Cloud and Stone are currently in negotiations with us and, despite what just happened, we do have a cease fire in effect. Also, with New Years coming up not many private contractors come to us with missions." The Hokage frowned as he spoke. He knew what six children would probably go through if left in the village.

Fugaku frowned as well. He had forgotten about the time of year and knew that the Hokage was telling the truth. "It can't be helped then. I'll actually be gone for a week visiting the capital but Toshiro will be around if anything goes wrong."

"It's okay. We're ninja! We can handle ourselves." Itachi smiled up at the Hokage and the old man reached over and ruffled his hair, making Itachi's smile grow even bigger.

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Fugaku sat in his meeting room far into the early hours of the morning. The quiet darkness that encompassed the village was like a cloak thrown over an ugly sweater. It hid secrets and lies and in the sleep of the mortals who succumbed to it dreams containing their deepest desires or most terrifying fears surfaced, only to be forgotten when the daylight came.

In this darkness thoughts that one dared not think in daylight also surfaced.

Remembering back to the Kyuubi attack he thought about how easy it was for Madara to gain the support of so many followers. And now the elders were calling for change. A new path to walk.

The easiest solution would be to just leave the village and become independent contractors. Soldiers for hire. However, if they inhabited their old hideout they would still be close to Konoha and would, no doubt, be seen as competition and attacked.

Another problem with leaving is that several Uchiha were still active ninjas in service to the Hokage. They would be labeled as "missing ninjas" and hunted down and possibly killed as traitors. That included two of their precious children.

Fugaku remembered the old histories written in the scrolls contained within the temple. Madara had warned the Uchiha when they entered the village of Konoha for the first time that this would happen. That the Uchiha existed for war and the Senju – the clan of the First and Second Hokages - wanted nothing more than to see them cease to exist. At this moment, Fugaku couldn't help but think that the man had, perhaps, some foresight after all. Because…

When Fugaku and Itachi had returned from the Hokage tower they approached the gate leading into the Uchiha compound. Surrounding the gate were several Uchiha police and clansmen. They could see Toshiro kneeling in front of his son. Shisui was obviously trying very hard not to cry. The side of his face was bleeding and Mikoto's aunt was wrapping a splint around the boy's arm. Fugaku looked down at Itachi and the rage he saw in the boys eyes would have brought most ninja to their knees.

Hanging from the gate by their necks were two dummies that had the Uchiha fan symbols drawn on them. Child sized dummies. Fugaku was too shocked to be mad. Looking back at Toshiro, he asked what happened.

Toshiro told him that who ever had put up the dummies had also waited for one of the children to exit the compound. They then threw things at him, rocks and garbage. He had a bad cut on his face that would require stitches and his arm was broken in two places.

Fugaku was then shocked again when several of the Uchiha, who had noted Itachi was now present, stated that if it was the coveted heir and genius of the clan who had been attacked the attackers would now be dead…as deserved of enemies of the clan.

Fugaku silently agreed. Glancing at Itachi to see his reaction he noted that the boy's face now held no expression. He then whispered, only loud enough for Fugaku to hear, "They were just kids. They are weak and not worth fighting."

This placed Fugaku in a bad position. They were kids, they had suffered a big disappointment when the Chuunin exams had been cancelled. They were being influenced by the council's anti-Uchiha propaganda. So who was at fault? He, like Itachi, had trouble blaming the kids. They would get over it in a few weeks, more than likely. The Konoha council however, _that_ was a long-term threat. _That_ was what he had to deal with first.

The four perpetrators had been found easily enough and arrested. Because they were ninja they were currently locked up in the ninja prison for seventy-two hours, courtesy of the Hokage, who didn't feel the need to wait for a trial. He was very angry and disappointed and apologized several times to Fugaku.

It was 10pm by the time Fugaku was able to return home. Everyone was in bed asleep, even Itachi. He made himself a pot of tea and retired to his meeting room.

Fugaku realized that he had to find out what Madara was up to. He needed a united front within his clan and if whatever Madara was planning affected that unity then his plan would not work. Well, he didn't quite know what he wanted to do yet, but he did know one thing. Somehow the members of the current council had to be removed from their positions and he had to ensure that their replacements would be friendly to the clan.

Shaking his head Fugaku finally stood up. It was 4am. He knew there was no way to remove the council members. The positions were appointed for life. And there was also the problem of replacements. Not wanting to disturb his wife by climbing into bed at such an early hour he laid down on the couch and fell asleep almost immediately. He barely noticed Itachi, who was sitting on the other couch lost in thought and watching one of his mother's samurai movies with volume turned down.

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**I meant for this chapter to showcase Itachi's abilities with Genjutsu. Also, I find it weird that Itachi would be a genin at such a young age then wait two years to take the Chuunin exam. So I'm explaining it as the council being afraid of promoting Uchiha's.**

**Chpt 400 was mind blowing. Poor Sasuke! Madara is definitely up to something though. **

**Updates on Fridays! Please review XD**


	29. Chapter 29 Trauma in the Mist

**In the last chapter the boys were denied the opportunity to participate in the Chuunin exams when they were cancelled.**

**Okay, this chapter starts with a little Madara X Mikoto. I am going somewhere with this pairing so I'm not being random. Also, it is not canon (I know someone's going to ask rofl) **

**Thanks for all the reviews! You are all so great! **

**One rebuttal: My four year old cousin can read, add and subtract. He learned in pre-school because his teacher wanted to see if it was possible. The whole class learned. He's very proud of himself. (I'm talking first grade level, not Shakespeare or algebra. And adding was easier to learn than subtracting.)**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto**

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**Chapter 29 – Trauma in the Mist**

The cold January snow had been falling for hours. Mikoto sat in the darkened living room and watched the drifting flakes through the glass doors. The small garden had almost a foot of snow and the various shrubs and small trees were nothing more than white bumps. The street lights made the ground glitter, as if millions of diamonds were falling instead of frozen water.

Mikoto had sent Itachi and Sasuke to spend the day with her aunt. She loved having them over and she needed help with a few things around the house. Itachi had volunteered no doubt with the knowledge that a job well done would earn him a very sweet treat afterward. Her aunt had become well known in the clan for her baking abilities.

Fugaku had returned to the Fire country capital. The contract the Daimyou had with the clan to have Uchiha work in his service had expired and Fugaku was negotiating a renewal. He was having problems because the new treasurer wanted to cut the contract amount by thirty percent. Fugaku wanted an increase of twenty percent and refused to budge. The negotiations that had started in December had extended into January.

Alone all day, Mikoto had time to do a bit of cleaning, watch her favorite movie, and now she was watching the snow fall with a pot of hot tea and some cookies. She missed the children, especially Sasuke. He loved the snow and was probably at her aunts making snow balls with Itachi. She had a passing thought that she could go join them. But, she'd have to get up, get her coat and boots out, walk over there… She stayed where she was.

"It is a beautiful sight." A deep voice spoke from behind her and she quickly stood up to see who had snuck into her house. She hadn't felt any chakra nearby.

"What are you doing here?" It was Madara. Mikoto frowned.

"You, sitting comfortably with a background of snow. It is a beautiful sight." He leaned against the back of one of the couches and crossed his arms. He had removed his mask and was smiling.

"I repeat, what are you doing here?" Mikoto remembered back to their last meeting and the look he gave her before he disappeared. Her expression turned to one of confusion.

Madara gave no answer, but continued to look at her.

"Last time…when you looked at me…what did that mean?"

Madara blinked once. He continued to look at the woman in front of him for a minute before answering. "It was nothing more than a desire for you to look upon me with something other than hate."

"After all the deaths you have caused? How can I do that? Also, have you forgotten that I am the wife of the clan chief?" Mikoto was getting mad again. How could this man ask her to forget Kagura and Saiyu and all the others who died because of him?

"If Fugaku had not opposed me, only Kagura would have died. Yes, Sasuke was kidnapped, but he would not have been outside your reach. Eventually he may have been returned to you. And the power he would have attained… he would have stood beside me in the new world order." Madara's voice was matter of fact and he held Mikoto's eyes with his powerful gaze.

Mikoto didn't know what to think of this information. "Please leave, Madara." The words came out as a plea.

Madara closed the distance, putting his hands on Mikoto's shoulders. She shuddered at the touch of his cold gloved hands.

"One day, Mikoto, you will ask me to stay." He leaned forward and caught her lips with his, moving his head slightly sideways to deepen the kiss. After a minute he stepped back and used a transportation jutsu to disappear.

Mikoto sank back down into her chair. "What is he up to?" She asked herself. She felt a chakra source from the other end of the house and stood up. Madara hadn't left. He was in the bedroom.

Slowly she walked down the hall. Opening the bedroom door she saw him standing in the middle of the darkened room, smiling.

"Come to me Mikoto." Madara's strong voice was almost like a command.

"Are you playing games with me? I asked you to leave!" Her voice rose as she maintained her place in the doorway.

"Are you afraid of what Fugaku will think?" Madara mocked her.

"As if! He has his fun with the prostitutes on his missions. I smell them on his clothes when he returns. He doesn't even hide it from me. I am sure _you're_ the same!"

"True. I have my fun. However, you…for some reason you are different. A powerful woman and an Uchiha. All those years ago, when I was clan chief, you would have been my wife."

"Flattery?" She asked, amused. She wasn't impressed by his words. She knew from the histories that he had taken four wives so an offer to become a fifth wife held no merit for her. Back then clan chiefs and feudal lords always took multiple wives to ensure heirs. However, she had a feeling she knew where _her_ husband would be spending _his_ evening.

Suddenly very lonely she looked up at Madara and this time her eyes held an expression of longing…not for the pleasures of the flesh, but for a companion. For a man whose eyes would look on her as a lover and not as an object of free sex.

Taking his time, Madara removed his gloves and then his shirt. His bare chest was illuminated by the light filtering in from the hall. Mikoto stepped forward a couple feet without thinking about it.

"Close the door." He said in a quiet voice.

The door clicked shut softly.

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Shisui gritted his teeth. Even though a month had passed since the announcement about the Chuunin exam's cancellation he was still mad. The frustration was almost overwhelming. And now, after returning from the capital, Fugaku had summoned the council and told them all to be "patient" and not to be "rash".

'Easy for him to say.' Shisui said to himself.

The meeting ended and Shisui stood up with all the others. The council meetings turned out to be boring and the boy wondered why the adults considered it such an honor to attend.

However, Shisui did get one thing from the meeting. The Konoha elder council was their enemy. Oh, Fugaku hadn't come straight out and said so but he had strongly hinted at that fact. And Shisui had taken the hint. Well, he had the solution to that.

"Lord Fugaku?" Shisui approached the clan chief. The only people left in the temple were Fugaku, Toshiro, Itachi and himself. As the junior members, the boys were tasked with cleanup after the meetings and the two men were gossiping.

"What is it Shisui?" Fugaku had noticed the boy's bad mood during the meeting.

"I could use my poisons to take out the council." Shisui frowned and looked up at Fugaku with a determined look.

Fugaku shook his head. "That isn't an option right now. There are other things to consider."

Shisui yelled, "Why not! I can do it! I'm very skilled at executions! Mother says so!"

Fugaku's eyes flashed with anger and he struck the boy upside his head, knocking him to the floor. Itachi stepped back in shock, quickly looking over at Toshiro.

Toshiro watched as his son started to stand up. "You even think of standing up right now Shisui and I will beat you to within an inch of your life!" He was mad. His son had just yelled at the clan chief and the embarrassment was unforgivable.

Shisui looked up at his father in shock, then looked back at the floor. What had he just done? He couldn't believe he had yelled at Fugaku, of all people. Gulping, he got down on his knees and pressed his forehead to the floor. Fighting back tears of embarrassment he gulped again.

"I'm so sorry. I apologize. Please, I apologize." Shisui couldn't bring himself to ask for forgiveness. He felt he didn't deserve it.

Fugaku frowned, but his voice was stern. "Shisui. You could no more sneak up on the two powerful elders than a rock could turn into a butterfly. I realize you are skilled with poisons, but in this case it isn't enough. We have to be patient right now. There are a hundred other things that must be considered if such an action were undertaken."

Toshiro bowed, "Forgive my son, Lord Fugaku. He acted rashly."

Fugaku smirked. "Congratulations, Toshiro. You are the proud parent of a teenager."

Toshiro stood up straight and shook his head. "Eleven? Well, I guess you are right. He's angsting enough lately to be one. I'll have to pass that on to Kisa. She thought there was something wrong with him."

Fugaku laughed at him and the two men left the temple. Itachi looked at Shisui who was still sitting with his forehead on the floor.

"Are you okay?" Itachi said hesitantly.

"No. I did something really stupid. I'm so sorry, Itachi." Shisui made no to attempt to move.

"You can get up now. We have to pick up the cushions and put them away."

"Okay." Shisui sat up and wiped his eyes, sniffing a couple times. His face was bright red.

"Shisui?"

"Yeah?"

"What were they talking about? You know, about the teenager stuff?"

"Oh. Teenagers are supposed to be rebellious and argue a lot and do the opposite of what their parents tell them, and they feel sorry for themselves all the time."

"I guess you're a teenager then." Itachi said matter-of-factly.

Shisui's eye's opened wide for a second in shock before he gave a short laugh. "I guess I should be more careful about what I say from now on."

Itachi smiled. He had a feeling that wasn't going to happen. Shisui was feeling sorry for himself a lot lately and arguing with his mother. Although Itachi was fairly certain you weren't considered a teenager until you were thirteen. Maybe there was more to it than just age?

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"Nooooo!" Sasuke screeched and ducked out of his mother's grasp. "If big brother doesn't get one I don't want one either!" He scooted himself under the dining room table and pouted.

Itachi cringed. "You set this up, didn't you?"

Mikoto gave her eldest son an evil smile. "Now Itachi. You must set a good example for your little brother. Come here and show him how obedient you are, then Sasuke will follow your example."

"But I don't want my hair cut either! I like it long!" Itachi complained.

"Me too!" A muffled voice came out from under the table.

Mikoto whispered to Itachi, "His hair is too thick and he gets things caught in it. I need it short to make it easier to care for. You have thin hair so you never had this problem. Now please go along with it. I don't want to put a Genjutsu on him for something as simple as a hair cut but if I have to I will."

Itachi sighed. "Okay. But don't cut it too short." He pulled the tie out of his hair and his mother brushed it out then started trimming the ends. She went slowly so she would attract Sasuke's attention. Soon the three-year-old crawled out from under the table.

"Does it hurt?" He asked quietly.

"No." Itachi smiled.

Mikoto looked at Itachi's hair. It was almost down to his waist.

"Itachi, I really think your hair should be more this length." She put her fingers a couple inches under his neck. "You are leaving on a long term mission in Water country tomorrow and I think it would be more practical."

He knew she was going to say that. Sasuke was watching the scissors, almost as if he was hypnotized.

He gave in. "Okay. Go ahead and cut it." Mikoto was obviously very tricky. He hoped he never had to face her in combat. He had a feeling it wouldn't go very well. It would take years to grow back, but by then Sasuke should be over his fear of haircuts. He hoped.

Back in his room, Itachi spread out his things on his bed, preparing to pack. His hair felt weird, though, and he kept pausing to run his hand through it. Mikoto had told him it would take a couple days to get used to.

He had never been on a mission that lasted more than three weeks and he was a little unsure of what to pack. Yurina had told him to bring everything he would need. Which, frankly, was a little too vague to be entirely useful. He didn't want to carry much so he decided to take the same things he took on the three week mission. If he needed something else he would buy it. They had been told the mission could be one to three months.

Fugaku stuck his head into the room. "Here are your pills, Itachi. Dr. Yakushi dropped them off at the station. You need to be careful, though, and only take them when you won't be needed in a fight."

"Yes father. Thank-you." Itachi bowed to his father then put the water-proof container inside his pack. He didn't want to take them at all. If he told his team mates he was taking drugs because the doctors thought he was mental he was sure they would think he was weak.

"Aren't you taking your katana?" Fugaku picked up the child-size sword from it's holder on the wall. Normally, when he was preparing to pack, Itachi would have placed it on the bed with his other weapons.

"It's too small. I'm going to buy another one. Mist has the best swords so it seemed like a good idea to leave my first sword here."

Fugaku smiled. He felt a little guilty, though. If he had paid attention he would have noticed and bought his son a sword himself. "I'll give you an old sword to take with you until you buy a new one. You can trade it in or leave it in a ditch if you want. That way you will have a full compliment of weapons."

"Are you sure?" Itachi didn't think his father would ever tell him to abandon something as expensive as a katana.

"Yeah. We have a warehouse with thousands of weapons in it so it's no problem. Besides, the weapon count will be same since you will be purchasing a new one to replace it." Fugaku left to go retrieve the sword.

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The six children and two senseis had been walking for a couple days when they finally reached the eastern coast of Fire country and saw the ocean. Itachi and Yota were the only ones who had never seen it before and they were pretty shocked at how big and noisy it was. They set up camp behind a barrier of trees and shrubs and lit a campfire. The next morning they would be walking a couple miles up the coast to a shipping town to book passage on a ship that would take them to Water country.

The "B" ranked mission in Water country was to protect a medium size town from rebels. The country had been caught up in civil war for many years and resources were stretched thin. The Daimyou's army and the village hidden in the Mist were having trouble keeping up with all the requests for help coming from besieged villages. This mission was going to be a combined Konoha and Mist effort, contracted by the Mist village itself. The request was so unusual that the Hokage was, at first, suspicious. He had ANBU check out the situation and when they confirmed Mist's sincerity for help he assigned two teams to head east. Needless to say the Hokage was putting a lot of pressure on two Genin teams he considered to be Chuunin level and had made it known very clearly that failure was not an option. He hoped that the successful completion of this mission would lead to better ties with Mist.

The two teams had used the first day to get to know each other. They exchanged information about each others jutsus and stopped for three hours around lunch time to spar.

Shisui's team turned out to be pretty interesting. His sensei was a man who was approaching forty and had come out of retirement because the war had created a shortage of ninjas. Aki Nojima had raised a team of Genin fifteen years ago, and all three had risen to become jounin only to be killed in the same battle that had taken Obito's life. Sana Nara was a thirteen year old girl from the Nara clan – meaning she had use of the shadow bind jutsu. The boy, Chikato Ishizu was also thirteen and was an earth jutsu user.

Chikato was instantly interested in Yuri's jutsus. He had heard rumors of her abilities and was thrilled to finally work with her. He spent a lot of time walking next to her, talking. Oddly enough, Yota didn't take this very well and made sure he walked on the other side of Yuri. Yuri pretended not do notice anything, but inside she was a little flattered.

Yurina and Aki spent a lot of time rehashing old missions and gossiping. They seemed to know each other already. Rather well, in fact. Aki would sometimes put his hand on her shoulder, or Yurina would grab his arm while they were talking.

Itachi and Shisui walked together and practiced using their Sharingans. Actually, it wasn't so much practice as it was self defense. Sana had made it her mission in life to one day trip Shisui with her shadow bind jutsu and with Itachi along, her mission got twice as interesting. Of course that meant the two boys had to be continually on guard as she randomly sent her shadow forward to catch them. So far she had failed.

The two teams ate a dinner of ramen and reconstituted vegetables before walking down to the beach to explore. It was dark, windy and cold, but the full moon and bright stars lit the beach and the water, creating a perfect scene of tranquility. Itachi rooted his feet in the sand and closed his eyes. The sound of the waves hitting the beach was very soothing.

"Is he alive? He's been standing there for ten minutes without moving." Sana asked, amused.

"Hey, let's poke him with a stick and find out." Chikato looked around but saw none nearby.

Shisui, Yota and Yuri laughed. They were used to Itachi's meditation techniques.

Sana sent her shadow forward, then fell forward as someone kicked the back of her knees.

"Tag, your 'it'!" Itachi laughed.

Sana stared at the boy in shock. "Damn, kid, you're as fast as Shisui! I didn't even see you move!"

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The voyage to Water took four days. The ship they caught passage on was a small freighter that was running with an empty cargo. The captain told them it was due for scrap and the shipyards in Water gave the best prices for steel. The kids were concerned that it was being scrapped because it would sink, but the captain assured them that it was because it was too small and the companies preferred the big ships because they could haul more, therefore costing less to operate.

Because they were the only passengers they ate with the crew and slept in empty crew quarters. Even so, everyone got their own room. The compliment of crew was much smaller than normal due to the lack of cargo.

Itachi and Shisui did get an interesting surprise though. The first day they walked into the dining room and an elderly man called them over to his table and introduced himself as Shouhei, a member of the Senju clan.

"Imagine meeting a couple a couple Uchiha way out here! I'm ninety-eight years old, boys and I remember in my youth fighting your great-great grandfathers. I tell you, those were fun times. I left for the sea after Konoha was founded. Couldn't stand the thought of not fighting anymore. That Madara guy, though. He had the right idea. Too bad he died."

"You knew him?" Itachi asked in awe.

"You bet! Even fought him once! Lucky me though, I didn't die. He was a sight though. When the Uchiha showed up you knew you were in for trouble. Madara would always hang back then show up a couple minutes later. His red armor, flowing black hair, red eyes and the Uchiha standard he carried on his back. He had an aura about him, something beyond chakra, something… indescribable. When Madara showed up you knew the world was about to end."

"Wow." Shisui was transfixed. To think that they would meet a man who was alive all those years ago. It was like finding a time machine.

"I was saddened when Senju sent Uchiha a peace offering and they accepted. War was what they were best at, and settling down… Let's just say when Madara called Uchiha the lapdogs of Senju he was right. War is the epitome of life. The reaffirmation of our meager existences. I spent the rest of my life as a pirate, retiring twenty years ago when I broke my hip. I've been working on freighters ever since. I plan to die on the job! That's the way to go, boys." The old man loved to talk and told the boys many stories about the old Uchiha and Senju, as well as his life as a pirate. Yota joined them later and tried to get the man to divulge the whereabouts of his hidden treasure, but he swore up and down he didn't have one, all the while laughing at the young Hyuuga's teasing.

He made Itachi and Shisui show him their Sharingans, and smiled at the memories it inspired. He also made the boys recount their family lineage back to people he remembered fighting, and told Itachi how his family and come to be in charge of the clan after Madara died, leaving no living heirs. His young children had all preceded him in death.

The last day, as they were preparing to exit the ship the old man pulled the two boys aside.

"I know Madara is still alive and in hiding. I don't know how he survived. When I saw you," he looked at Itachi, "I thought he had used a body transfer jutsu and you were him. Itachi, you truly have a chakra as powerful as Madara's, but your eyes are somehow different. I can't explain it. Just… watch your back boy. Madara will be coming for you and he does not suffer fools. He kills them. Go along with him, learn what you can, but if you don't want him to train you then you'll have to kill yourself. Once he chose a student he never took 'no' for answer." He watched as the two young Uchiha walked over to Yota and the three boys waved to him.

Shouhei waved back and yelled. "I want you three to grow old so that when you are ninety-eight you can tell young children that once upon a time you met an old man who walked the land before the great villages existed."

"We will!" The three boys yelled back then walked down the gangplank to the shore.

The old man watched them. "You won't." He muttered. "A Hyuuga with a death wish, a cursed son of a clan chief and his best friend. If any of you make it to twenty it will be a bloody miracle. I can see Madara already has his hands on you, Itachi." Shaking his head he went to pack his things. Time to find a new ship.

Itachi was silent for several hours after they left the dock. He knew that the man's words about Madara were not so much of a warning as a declaration that he knew Itachi was in contact with him. But how could he know? Was Madara able to change his chakra somehow so that the old Senju could sense him?

Glancing over at Shisui he saw his cousin return his look and frown. Shaking his head he mouthed the words "not now". Itachi nodded in understanding.

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It was immediately clear that Water country was in serious trouble. As soon as they got away from the docks they saw many beggars, burned out and abandoned buildings and a couple old, unclaimed corpses. One young beggar boy looked so much like Sasuke that Itachi felt his heart clench and he had to struggle to turn away. His mother, or a woman Itachi assumed was his mother, lay next to him asleep. He activated his Sharingan to verify she was breathing, but something was wrong with her.

"She's overdosed. She'll be fine after she sleeps it off. Or dies." Yota spoke into Itachi's ear, then walked away. Itachi remembered that Yota's parents were drug addicts, his mother had committed suicide by overdosing. Itachi looked back at the child. If Yota hadn't been in a clan, that could have been him on the side of the street with his mother. The clan watched over his family, not very well, but they had a home and food. Something this little boy probably would never have.

Itachi watched Yota walking ahead of him and realized that Yota wouldn't see it that way. Yota's parents had been treated so badly that they had no respect for themselves anymore. The criticism and lack of moral support broke their spirits. Because of that Yota had confided in Itachi and Shisui his hatred of the clan, and by extension, Konoha.

Aki saw the children's reaction and pulled them close for a quick meeting. "I should have warned you before we got off the ship. Starvation is rampant in this country right now. Not because of a shortage of food, although in a few villages that will be the case, but because the people can't afford it. We have been hired to protect one village in a land where all the villages are suffering. Harden your hearts and keep to the mission. We can't save everyone."

They reached the countryside outside the village. Travel was difficult even though the country was much smaller than Fire country. For one thing the roads went all over the place. Nothing was in a straight line. Another problem was the large number of hills and a small mountain range. They were going to have to cross up a mountain pass, drop into a valley, then climb a second mountain pass to get to their destination. Luckily there would be no snow, as the passes didn't go high enough to reach the snowline.

When they reached the village next to the first mountain pass they were surprised to find it deserted. No people or even corpses. Everyone just left. A few dogs milled about, staring at them with disinterest but that was it. They found an inn and claimed a few deserted rooms for the night, using the kitchen to cook a hot dinner, and the next morning, breakfast.

Leaving the inn they briefly argued about whether they should leave some money behind to pay for the food. Yurina won the argument when she said that the money would more than likely go to thieves. That was a hard argument to disprove so they left the ghost town quietly and climbed up the pass.

It would take the better part of the morning to reach the other side of the pass, which was good news. It meant they would be able to stay overnight in the valley instead of in the mountains. The map showed a medium sized village in the center of the valley and it was bound to have several inns.

Eagerly they walked down the road knowing that the valley was just ahead. Yuri had run ahead, bored with all the walking she was looking forward to seeing the valley.

The road was large enough for two wagons to ride abreast, but even so the brush on either side showed evidence of heavy traffic. As if someone was driving three abreast. There was deep mud in places and large rocks and branches had been thrown in the mud to create a walkway. It was very well used. Perhaps the village in the valley was more popular than they thought, or there had been a festival recently.

Finally breaking out of the woods they stopped at a cliff. Yuri was collapsed on the ground, crying. Yota and Itachi crouched down next to her, thinking that she had fallen and hurt herself, or was otherwise ill.

"What's wrong, Yuri?" Yota rubbed his hand across her back in an attempt to sooth her. However, Yurina knelt down next to them and pointed toward the valley. Her face had drained of all color.

Itachi slowly turned his head and looked. The valley was about ten miles across and was nothing more than an open grassland. Or, it would have been if it wasn't for all the corpses. Thousands of them. As far as the eye could see there wasn't a single living being, animal or bird.

The small group stared at the sight for several minutes. None of them had ever seen carnage at this level. If the village was gone – and there was no evidence of it from the cliff – then there could easily be forty thousand people dead. However, factoring in the soldiers that could rise substantially.

Standing up Itachi made his way back to the road and started to follow it down the mountain. The road followed the cliff closely and as they descended over the next hour they got a closer view of the carnage. He didn't know where he was going, just that he had to do something.

Yuri had finally stopped crying and was clutching tightly onto Yota, who was holder her just as tightly. Shisui walked close behind Itachi, worried about what his young cousin might be thinking. Itachi seemed to have become a zombie, his gaze never left the valley. Shisui lifted a hand to brush his hair away from his face and realized he was trembling badly.

When they reached the floor of the valley Yurina and Aki moved around the corpses turning some over to get a closer view. When they returned they were very somber.

Aki spoke first, after clearing his throat several times. "It appears there was a major battle here. There are Daimyou soldiers, Mist ninja, and at least three other rebel standards I can't identify." He pointed to the east, "That should be the village. As you can see, nothing remains, so a population of forty thousand is also dead. This may explain why the village we stayed at last night left. They may have been herded here by rebel forces and then killed. The idea that they escaped is not worth considering."

Where there should have been the distant outlines of buildings belonging to the village was nothing. There wasn't even any smoke from smoldering fires. As far as the eye could see was corpses. Had they really fought to the last man, woman and child? It seemed inconceivable.

They continued walking, they had to cross the valley. Itachi felt someone wrap a cloth loosely around his nose and mouth but he didn't react. He looked at the faces of everyone he passed. Then he saw them. A woman was collapsed over three small children. There were arrows sticking up out of all three and one child had a crushed head. He stopped at stared at them.

A year ago in Rice country he had seen a woman give her body in order to save the lives of her children. He hadn't really understood until his mother had done the same thing to save Sasuke from Madara. Or he thought he had understood. But now… this mother had died. She wasn't able to protect her children. How could it be?

He passed a corpse of a woman sitting up against the remnants of a wooden wall, in her lap was a dead man. Was it her husband?

Itachi stopped walking after an hour. He felt strange. His hands were numb and his head felt fuzzy. He looked at his hands and moved his fingers. He looked ahead and saw another woman with two children. And another. Everywhere he looked were corpses. No one had saved them. No one cared that they were weak and couldn't defend themselves. No one gave them the chance to defend themselves. To train for years and years and then fight the battle. He noticed that they were in their nightclothes. Was it a sneak attack at midnight?

Itachi thought back to Obito and stepped back in shock when he saw his older cousin laying under several boards. Running forward he quickly grabbed the boards and shoved them aside, but the corpse wasn't Obito's. It didn't even look like him. What was going on?

Aki moved forward towards Itachi but Shisui warned him off. "He can be a little unpredictable at times. Be careful."

"He needs to be restrained. He's about to have a meltdown." Aki was worried. Itachi was too young to be here, he was a skilled fighter but he didn't know what death meant yet. Why did the Hokage allow such young children to become ninja's? He had argued over it many times with the Third and the Fourth but they always fell back on the "It has to be that way" argument.

Yurina spoke up. "He has some pills in his backpack. You hold him and I'll get the pills. We can sedate him for the rest of the trip, but you'll have to carry him."

Shisui moved toward Itachi, warily. The younger boy was now kneeling next to a soldier who was clutching a photograph in his lifeless hand. Shisui reached out and touched Itachi's shoulder. No reaction. He looked up at Aki and nodded.

Aki bent down and picked the boy up. He situated Itachi so that the boy's legs wrapped around his torso. Itachi placed his cheek on Aki's shoulder and let his arms hang down. The first thing Aki noticed was that this boy who was a month from his ninth birthday was very light. The second thing he noticed was that Itachi wasn't reacting to him. His eyes were half open and he was very limp.

"Shit! Yurina, he's going into shock. We can't sedate him if that's a danger. It could cause side effects."

"We need to speed it up then and get out of here. The other kids aren't doing so well either." Yurina glanced back at the four children who were huddled together staring wide-eyed at Itachi.

Shisui was leaning against Aki's arm, holding his cousins backpack. He had his eyes closed – trying to reassure himself that the man he was leaning against was a live being and he wasn't alone. Aki looked down at him with a worried expression.

Yurina yelled loudly, "Run as fast as you can. We are getting out of this valley. Now!"

Yurina and Aki let the young ninja's run ahead of them then they followed.

Ninety minutes later they reached the other end of the valley and climbed up the path. Two more hours passed and they finally stopped for the night. Darkness had fallen and they still had a few hours of travel before they came out of the pass. It was better to camp out in the woods than risk entering a strange town with six shell shocked children. Besides, who knew what shape the next village would be in anyway? It was better to deal with that uncertainty in the daylight.

Itachi still wasn't reacting to anything. Aki was very worried. He sat against a tree and shifted the boy so he was sitting sideways in his lap. He rubbed the boys back and talked to him, trying to get a reaction. Yurina tried to get him to drink some water but he wouldn't swallow and it dribbled down his chin. They tried rubbing a cloth dipped in cold water across his face, pinching his arm, yelling in his ear. Nothing worked. Shisui was so worried he was near tears.

"Shisui," Aki asked quietly so the other wouldn't hear. "Just what is Itachi's problem?"

"The doctors didn't diagnose any problems. They said he had some sociopathic tendencies, but not enough to be diagnosed as one. They didn't give him any medication for it either. The stuff he has is to knock him out so he doesn't have nightmares. He represses his feelings, letting them build up, then they explode and he breaks down. You heard about him and Yota?"

"Hmm. That was Itachi huh?" Aki was silent for a couple minutes. "I guess, we'll just lay him down for the night and let him rest. Can you get his bedroll out for him?"

_The rain poured down on a destroyed Konoha. A boy, an older, teenage version of Sasuke, knelt down next to two corpses. Pink hair and blond hair mixed with each other as the newly dead embraced. They were the teenage versions of the little girl Sasuke met in the park, Sakura, and the Fourth's son Naruto. Tears were coming out of the teen's eyes as he collapsed over their bodies. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I wasn't able to save you. Itachi, if only… if only things were different, you would have been here with me to save them…"_

_Itachi walked up to the teenager and tried to call out to him, but his voice was gone. He looked down at his body and saw that not only was he an adult, but he was transparent. He was a ghost. He couldn't help his brother because he was already dead. Where were their parents? They should be here… Itachi gasped as the transparent forms of Fugaku and Mikoto appeared in front of him, looking down at Sasuke they also tried to reach out to him. They were dead as well. They looked up at Itachi, shock on their faces, then anger. He was supposed to have protected his little brother, yet here he was, dead._

_Looking away Itachi noticed that all of Konoha was gone. The buildings had all collapsed. Corpses were everywhere. _

_A desperate plea was shouted into the rain, echoing impotently among the destroyed buildings and bloated corpses, "Please! Don't let this be my fault!"_

"Itachi! Wake up!" Shisui was shaking Itachi. Itachi had just sat straight up and yelled out a very chilling phrase.

Itachi grabbed Shisui's jacket and looked him in the eye, "Shisui, please, don't let this be my fault!" He wondered, as consciousness slowly returned to him, who had yelled those words – himself or Sasuke – and why either one of them would feel responsible for the destruction of their home.

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**Next week, the mission in Mist begins. **

**I'm going for about 80% accuracy here with the Manga. It would be impossible to get closer, I think, because the story is still developing and I needed to add some things for dramatic intent. The mission in Mist was meant to be basically filler, but I added the battlefield scene to correspond with a similar event in the Manga, so it now has actually importance in the story. Aren't you happy? XD It was too important and I had to add it somehow. However, I see no difference in how a four year old or an eight year old would react. Or for that matter a twelve or sixteen year old. Battlefields are traumatic and Madara's words about it were disturbing – like an adult would react to it maturely and logically. Uh… no. I believe that shows us a little bit of how twisted Madara's thought processes are. He never understood why his clan wanted peace.**

**And finally… OMG Itachi had a girlfriend! I have to figure out how to plot no jutsu a girl into the story now… Well actually I was going to add a girl, but the relationship would have been one of regrets instead of love. I'll figure it out. XD**

**Anyway – you are tired of reading these long author's notes so – Updates on Fridays! And keep reviewing, ask questions if something is wrong or confusing you or just say how much you like it! Just review! **


	30. Chapter 30 Following Orders

Last week the two Konoha teams set out for the Land of Water to assist a Mist team to defend a village. Once they arrive they must walk through a battlefield of corpses to get to the village. Itachi reacts by shutting down, then having a nightmare.

Thanks for all the reviews and fav's!

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto

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Chapter 30 – Following Orders

Shame engulfed the small boy as he realized he was now the center of attention. He was grasping his cousin's shirt after having cried out in the embrace of a nightmare. Releasing the shirt he sat back on his bedroll and looked at the ground, not wanting to meet anyone's gaze.

"Itachi…" Shisui began to speak, but was interrupted by Aki.

"It's okay Itachi. Everyone had nightmares. Look – the others have been sitting by the fire for a couple hours now, unable to go back to sleep." He lifted the boy's chin and turned it to face the fire.

Yurina was sitting with Yuri and Sana leaning against her. Yota was absentmindedly banging a stick against the logs in the fire while Chikato was sitting with his legs drawn up to his chest and his forehead resting on his knees. Shisui had apparently put his bedroll next to Itachi's and was sitting there when Itachi woke up.

"It's okay, Itachi, I won't tell Fugaku." Shisui could see what Itachi was thinking.

Itachi looked up at the sky and estimated that they had three hours until dawn.

"Why are there no ghosts?" Itachi asked quietly.

Aki frowned. "Were there ghosts in your dream?"

"Yes. I was a ghost."

Aki sighed and sat down. No one spoke again until the sun came up over the horizon.

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The small group had been traveling for several hours when they finally descended the mountain pass. The village they had looked forward to reaching, though, had its gates shut. A guard who was standing in front of it informed them, in no uncertain terms, that no one was welcome in the village and they could just continue on to the next town.

Aki was furious and tried to threaten the guard, saying that the children needed to rest. Yurina stopped him though, and said they would be better off if they kept moving.

Itachi just followed everyone, his mind was wracked with confusion. Yurina had refused to give him any soldier pills, saying she wanted him to be tired so he would sleep better. He felt like something had been stripped from him. A heightened sense of awareness pervaded his consciousness and he heard every little sound, saw every movement, and felt every gust of wind. He tried to identify the missing…whatever it was, but he couldn't.

However, Yurina knew what it was. Yuri had spoken up and said what Itachi was thinking. Yurina called it a "comfort layer". She said it was the protective layer we unconsciously wrap around ourselves. It makes us enjoy small things, and protects us from feeling too much sorrow. When stripped away, only the bad things remain. Nothing good pleases us, the sun is cold and dark and love no longer exists. With time, it grows back, but some people never fully heal.

They were looking for another place to camp as the two other villages they passed also refused them entrance, this time because they were ninja. The villagers didn't have a fear of them, as was often the case, even in Fire country. Instead they hated them

"We'll reach the village we are supposed to protect tomorrow." Yurina tried to smile, but sighed instead. "We have to try and put what we saw behind us. We have to appear strong enough to succeed in our mission. I think… I think we saw a good example of what could happen if we fail."

That got everyone's attention. The thought of more innocent people being killed was an eye-opener. Itachi's thoughts turned immediately back to his dream. He had been unable to help his brother because he wasn't there. If they didn't show up at the village tomorrow, or were sitting around feeling shell-shocked then the village would come under attack. He had to protect them.

Itachi straightened up and looked into Yurina's eyes. "I'll protect them, Yurina."

Everyone else took Itachi's lead and repeated their determination to protect the village. However, that night was, again, restless. Nightmares invaded their sleep, as they would for years to come.

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The next day they stopped at a natural hot spring they found a few miles outside of the village. Aki and Yurina told the kids to bathe, put on clean clothes, then take a two hour nap. She wanted to put forth a good image when they walked into Kusakabe and walking into the village looking like a bunch of zombies probably wouldn't cut it.

"It's not vanity." Yurina explained as she looked into the disbelieving faces of the six children while Aki stifled a laugh, not at what Yurina said but at the expressions of the children. "We need to look strong, efficient, and above all professional. Mist village has never been on good terms with us and our conduct here is important."

An hour later Itachi was sitting in a tree overlooking a stream a short distance away. He couldn't sleep and had wandered away thinking maybe a change of scenery would help. The stream was running slow since the spring melt was still months away.

Itachi was alerted to a noise behind him and suddenly found himself falling into the water. Wet and spluttering water from his mouth he felt himself being lifted up by the back of his coat. He brought his hands up to form a seal when he suddenly stopped in shock. The man holding him up was… blue? Itachi blinked, but the color remained.

"Ha ha ha ha! Look what I caught Zabuza. Should we filet it or have some sushi?" The blue man also had pointy teeth and perfectly round white eyes. This was getting weirder and weirder.

The teenager he called "Zabuza" walked over and looked up at Itachi. "Nah. Too small. Through it back, Kisame."

Itachi looked at the blue man again. He was wearing a Mist head band, as was the teenager. He wondered if these were the two shinobi Mist was sending to help them. Folding his arms in front of him Itachi scowled.

"Are you going to put me down?" Itachi didn't feel threatened by the two ninjas. But he didn't like being the butt of their joke either.

"I don't know. Leaf grows some pretty small ninja." Kisame sounded thoughtful.

"I'd think twice about that if I were you." Aki walked up and leaned against a tree. "That boy's not all home, if you know what I mean."

Kisame gave a big grin as Itachi activated his sharingan. "Uchiha, huh? I've heard about that clan. Well, well, well, so the little fish turns out to be a piranha." He set Itachi down on the ground.

Itachi quickly used a fire jutsu to start a fire and stripped off his wet jacket, shirt and pants. He then looked up at the men standing around him. "What? You expect me to get hypothermia? Go bug someone else!" Itachi sat down on his knees and started to methodically ring the water out of his clothes.

Kisame shook his head as he saw Aki's face frown in concern. He stepped forward and knelt next to the boy. Itachi's sharingan eyes watched as Kisame performed a series of hand seals then held his hands over the wet clothing. The water dropped away from the clothes and onto the ground.

Itachi and Aki opened their eyes wide in amazement. The clothes were now completely dry. Kisame then performed the seals again and this time put his hand over Itachi's dripping hair. Once again the water fell to the ground and Itachi ran his hand through his now-dry hair.

"Thank-you! That is a very useful jutsu. My name is Itachi Uchiha, by the way." Itachi stood up and quickly put his clothes back on. It was very cold out and his teeth had started to chatter. "That is Aki Nojima."

"Pleased to make your acquaintance. I am Kisame Hoshigake and this punk here is Zabuza Momochi. We are two of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist. You are here to assist us in protecting Kusakabe, I take it." Kisame and Zabuza both picked up large swords and swung them over their shoulders.

Itachi looked at Zabuza closely. He was a teenager and pretty cocky. His black eyes and cropped black hair gave him a look of efficiency. There was no doubt he was a powerful ninja. He was tall, but still a head shorter than Aki who stood about six foot. Kisame on the other hand was about six and a half feet tall and he also looked like a teenager, albeit older than Zabuza.

"If you don't mind me asking, how old are you two?" Aki was curious. He had heard of the Seven Swordsmen and imagined them to be powerful jounin in their twenties or even thirties, not teenagers.

Zabuza gave a short laugh. "Don't worry, we get asked that all the time. I'm fifteen and Kisame here is twenty. How old is shorty?"

Itachi frowned and started to give off chakra full of killing intent. Kisame's expression turned dark. "Zabuza. Show some respect. You should know more than most that just because he is a child does not mean you should underestimate him."

Backing off his chakra Itachi looked up at Kisame, confused. In the past he had to take lots of insults and teasing from adults about his small size and youth but few had ever defended him. He decided to answer the question. "I'll be nine next month."

"Humph. We'll see. When we get to the village, Itachi, you and me will do some sparring." Zabuza smirked and started to walk away.

Kisame laughed. "We'll meet you at the Happiness Inn, just inside the gate at 6pm for dinner. I'll fill you in on the mission then." He jogged the short distance to catch up to his partner.

"Wow. What was that?" Itachi said, slightly awed.

Aki laughed. "I think we are in for an interesting time here. Let's get back. Everyone else is ready to go, I was just coming to get you to let you know."

"He snuck up on me, Aki." Itachi said smiling.

"Why are you happy?" Aki was a little surprised at the boy's reaction to being bested.

"It means I have to pay him back for that, and when I do I will be stronger." Aki gaped at the boy. It made perfect sense. "And when I am strong I can protect our village too."

Aki smiled, but inside he felt a wave of relief. When he returned to Konoha, he would have to find a way to introduce this boy to a certain acquaintance of his. Shisui, despite Aki's tutelage had not turned out quite as he wished. Even after they had arranged for the Cloud ninja to attack the boy, Shisui still saw the team as secondary. Itachi, though… perhaps…

Breaking out of his thoughts Aki watched as Itachi ran ahead to grab his backpack and stand next to the others, telling them about the two Mist shinobi he had just met.

Yurina gave Aki a warning glance and he shook it off. They had a brief argument earlier about how he was treating Itachi. She didn't want him to become close to him, saying that his father was the clan chief and Itachi needed to learn to stand on his own two feet, even if that meant turning your back on him occasionally. Aki disagreed and told her that he was a boy of contradictions who was suffering from neglect. Yurina agreed that his father was abusive but that Itachi's future position as clan chief called for a different type of upbringing that what a normal ninja would go through. The argument had ended in an impasse.

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Dinner was an interesting affair that evening. Kisame turned out to be a gregarious man who loved to talk and tease. Zabuza on the other hand was full of angst. While he laughed at some of Kisame's jokes, for the most part he sat lost in his own thoughts with a scowl on his face. Occasionally he made snide remarks to the leaf ninja.

The children had been given the "bury your feelings and stick to the mission" speech three times that day and were trying very hard to stick to it. However, Yuri finally brought it up, asking if the two Mist ninjas knew what had happened.

Zabuza tsked then scowled at the leaf ninja's. "God damned Daimyou sent a thousand mist ninja's into a slaughter. That bastard's gonna pay for that someday."

"What?" Yota asked, curious.

Kisame answered, after giving Zabuza a dirty look. "The village you passed through was the secret base of operations for the largest rebel group in Water country. The Daimyou got this hair brained scheme. If he let three other rebel groups learn the location, then sent his troops and Mist shinobi to the village then he could wipe out four rebel groups in one blow.

"Unfortunately for him the three rebel groups he informed grew suspicious and formed a temporary alliance with the fourth, suspecting an attack and were ready when Daimyou and shinobi arrived. To make things worse, the Daimyou army was ordered to leave no one alive."

Zabuza spoke up, almost spitting the words out. "The goddamned order applied to the shinobi as well. After the villagers and the rebels were killed, they were told to kill the shinobi. Three escaped – sent as messengers to tell us of the Daimyou's treachery."

"The shinobi took out the entire army, but they all died as well. The Daimyou has been hiring some very powerful shinobi to fill his ranks, apparently behind our backs." Kisame scowled.

"But the villagers… the army went along with the orders to leave no one alive? Didn't the shinobi try to protect them?" Yuri said in a small voice.

"Orders is orders, little girl. If you are told to slit the throat of a cute three year old, you had better have that kids head in your hands when you return from your mission. Morals are few and far between in this line of business. Better figure that out quick, kid." Zabuza's voice was bitter.

Kisame gave Zabuza another dirty look. "From what the messengers tell us the army arranged it so that the shinobi would engage the rebels while they slaughtered the villagers. Everyone was spread out all over the valley. We have no record of individual 'heroics' if that is what you want to call such a thing, but in the end nothing came of it."

Yuri opened her mouth to argue, but Itachi spoke up. "Yuri, don't say anything more." He remembered Dr. Motoi. He still felt guilty about killing him. However, if he was ordered to do the same thing now, this very minute, would he walk away? He wasn't sure what he would do, but probably, he would kill him again. He was still weak. Scowling he went back to his fish stew, forcing himself to eat.

Kisame gave Itachi a puzzled look then changed the subject. "On to the mission. Zabuza and myself will be taking out the rebel leader. In other words, he is ours so hands off. The rebels have attacked this village seven times in the last year. We have let it be known that ninja are here protecting the village and that it will take more than the usual compliment of raiders. The fact that two of those ninja belong to the infamous Swordsmen should draw the leader out. They need a scroll that is being kept in the shrine in the center of town. Apparently it contains the secrets of the Ice clan. Should they get that scroll they would become very powerful and the threat to Mist and Water would be tremendous.

"Your job here is to keep watch and protect the shrine. At all costs. If they get that scroll we could loose hundreds of thousands of lives. This town has only sixty thousand people in it. Do you understand the situation?"

Itachi spoke up before the others could say anything. "How is taking out the leader going stop them from grabbing the scroll? He will have followers with the same ideas as himself."

"The fact is only a handful of the man' inner circle know about the scroll. A total of four men. The rest think they are out for a good old fashioned pillage party." Kisame laughed.

"Are you serious?" Yurina found the whole thing hard to believe. "Only four people know of the scroll?"

"Yep. The man is a control freak and massively paranoid. He is also very charismatic and could talk you into walking off a cliff without you even realizing what you were doing – without using an ounce of chakra." Zabuza smiled. He looked forward to the impending fight.

"So you see," Kisame continued, "if we take out the leader and his henchmen then the scroll is safe and the rebel forces should be easier to disperse. But don't get me wrong – this is still going to be a lot of work. An you, little girl" he reached over and tapped Yuri on the tip of her nose, "will have to kill innocent people. Not all of those rebels are fighting because they want to."

Yuri nodded her head in understanding and memories of her destroyed home in Grass country flooded her mind. She understood everything, but she wished she didn't.

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Itachi and Shisui were on watch two days later. They were nearing the end of their shift and getting antsy. It was possible they would be in this village for months before the rebels attacked. They really hoped it would be weeks, though.

Kisame approached the two Uchiha's and sat next to them. "That's a really ratty sword you have there kid. Your folks too poor to get you a good one?"

Shisui scowled at him. "The Uchiha are a rich and powerful clan, Lord Fugaku would never give his son something second rate."

Itachi sighed. "It's just temporary. I've outgrown my old sword and I figured I would buy a new one while I was here. Father told me to ditch this one when I did."

"Hmm. Well, give it to one of the townsmen. The shop here is too expensive for the peasants. You should hurry up and buy your sword though. Don't want to fight with that thing." Kisame stretched out his legs, crossing them at the ankles.

"Ok. What's wrong with it?" Itachi looked at Shisui, who was giving Kisame a puzzled expression.

"It's assembly line made. It belongs in a storehouse to be used for emergencies by non-shinobi. Why a shinobi clan would have something like that is beyond understanding."

Shisui took a hold of the sword and started to look at it. He then pulled out his own Katana to compare them. The boys spent ten minutes looking but couldn't find anything different between the two.

Kisame laughed at them. "This seal on the hilt is an old company that mass produces swords. Shisui, your sword is hand made and the seal on it tells me it comes from a private individual. The difference is in length of life. Itachi's sword will break easily, your sword should last several more generations. In fact, you probably inherited it."

"Yes. It was my uncles; he died a few years ago." Shisui put his sword away. "But Itachi, why would your father give you that?"

"I'm supposed to be buying a new one. But really, I'm supposed to use my Kekkei Genkai to fight anyway so I guess that it wouldn't have been an issue."

Three hours later Kisame escorted the two boys into a weapons shop. Itachi and Shisui's eyes popped out the moment they stepped in. The shop was spotless and brightly lit. Weapons of every shape and size graced the walls, some in very decorative displays. The floor was a very plush red carpet and behind the counter were pictures of the Mist's Seven Swordsmen, both present and past members.

"Hey, shopkeep! Get this boy a good katana. He is an Uchiha Lord and deserves the best." Kisame's voice rang out through the store and the shopkeeper stood up in amazement.

"You…you're one of the Swordsmen! I'll go grab a few right now. Wait here." He scrambled out of the room excitedly and into the back, coming back ten minutes later holding several swords.

"Okay, boy, come here." Itachi walked over to a spot that had a circle drawn on the floor that had the words "Test swords here" painted in the middle. "Stand here so you don't destroy my shop when you swing the sword. Now. How tall do you think you'll get?" He rested his chin in his hand and looked down at the boy, sizing him up.

"I don't know. Shisui?" Itachi figured he wanted to give him a sword of the correct length, but still…

"His father is about five foot seven and his mother a couple inches shorter, I think. My mother said he will probably be taller than them." Shisui spoke matter-of-factly.

"Well I think I'll err on the side of short and fit you will a sword for someone your father's height." While the shopkeeper was talking Kisame had gone through the swords and pulled out five. The shopkeeper looked at the small pile and smiled.

"You certainly are an expert." After trying out all five swords Itachi found them all to be fairly similar, so he chose the one that had a hilt long enough to enable him to handle it with two hands.

After selecting a scabbard Itachi paid for his purchases with cash. 250,000 ryous. The shopkeeper's eyes popped out of his head at the site of an eight year old boy counting out that much money. Shisui shook his head in annoyance. That was way too much money to carry around a bandit-ridden countryside. Kisame laughed. He knew there was something about this little piranha he pulled out of the water. The boy had guts.

"Where did you get that much money kid?" Kisame asked, still laughing.

"Reward money. I killed a murderer from Mist and three jounin from Cloud. Plus my father pays me for Uchiha missions, and gives me an allowance." Itachi's voice was matter of fact.

"Yeah, I heard that Mist guy was taken out by an Uchiha. So that was you." Kisame was now officially impressed.

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The first attack came at 2am, almost two months after their arrival. One hundred and twenty five rebels were approaching the village. The Mist and two Konoha teams quickly assembled to their positions. Kisame and Zabuza dispersed outside the village to track down the four top officers and the Konoha ninjas arranged themselves so that Chikato, Sana and Yuri guarded the temple and the rest ran outside the gates to face the rebels.

Yota quickly ran out into the middle of the rebels. The surprised rebels didn't expect such a move and stood back from the boy, expectantly. They had been told ninja were guarding the village. He quickly formed signs then pushed one palm in front of him as he activated his Byakugan.

"Hakke Rokujuuyonshou!" Yota yelled as he quickly executed the sixty-four palms attack. Simultaneously twirling in place he extended his chakra to cut off sixty-four chakra points on the thirty rebels standing nearest to him. The others quickly moved away from the attack.

Itachi and Shisui took advantage of the resulting confusion to attack those fleeing Yota's attack. Activating their sharingans, Itachi ran north and Shisui ran south. Both boys yelled "Housenka no Jutsu" to execute the "Fire Phoenix" technique and then launched small bursts of fire at the rebels. Screams could be heard echoing in the night as the men were hit with the fire balls and quickly succumbed.

Yurina was using a scanning jutsu to scope out the area. For some reason it seemed the rebel soldiers had attacked in one group. However, there was no sign of Kisame or Zabuza. That meant the leaders were not with the main group. Which meant that, possibly, there was a second battalion of rebels nearby. She couldn't believe that they would travel alone, although as paranoid as the leader was supposed to be it was possible.

"I'm going to scout out the area. I think there is another group nearby. I'll contact you on the radio." Yurina yelled to Aki, who nodded in understanding. He was also suspicious.

Aki paused to watch Yurina run off to the north, then pulled several foot long needles from pouches he had strapped to both legs. It was his favorite weapon and he was a master of their use. He could launch them from a hundred feet and get a precise hit on any number of pressure points on the human body. His favorite was the spine. It would instantly render the recipient unconscious without any pain.

Readying his senbon he stood in front of the village's front gate and threw them at anyone who approached.

Yota moved east into another group of rebels. However, the confusion was quickly passing and the men were preparing to defend themselves. 'I need a few more minutes to recharge my chakra before I can do another attack.' Yota said to himself. He could do three in the next hour, but after that he would be drained and have to rely on Taijutsu alone.

As the rebels closed in Yota prepared himself for individual attacks. He could push his chakra through his hand, making single hits on pressure points in the bodies of his enemies. When the rebels saw that he was still a danger they closed in on him in groups instead of singly. However, Yota was still able to fight them off. They backed off and looked at the boy.

"He's just a kid. How can he have that much power?" One of them scowled.

"We need to get word to headquarters about this." The man raised his hand in the air, giving a signal with his hands. Another man who was stationed nearby in a tree took off to the north.

Yota saw the man escaping and moved to intercept him, only to have his path blocked by seven men. Using a mixture of Taijutsu and the gentle fist attack the boy fought the men. Four of the men kept the boy occupied while the other three pulled out kunai and launched them.

Feeling for his chakra Yota smiled when he realized he had enough for an attack. "Hakke Rokujuuyonshou!" he yelled once again and the seven men when flying, landing several feet away unconscious.

Itachi was now utilizing a genjutsu to confuse several rebels into thinking they were sinking into a swamp. Yota laughed. The men were lifting their feet up, clawing the air with their hands and screaming in terror. Some of the village guards were taking advantage of the opportunity to restrain them and quickly tie them up.

Shisui was moving through the fallen and injured rebels, poking them with a poisoned senbon. Itachi and Yota watched him for a few seconds, then Itachi ran over to cousin and grabbed his hand.

"What do you think you're doing?" Itachi asked quietly.

"They are injured. Healing them would waste the town's resources. This poison will kill them quickly." Shisui looked Itachi in the eye and then dislodged his arm and turned away.

"But Shisui… they've fallen and can't fight anymore. Remember what you told me? Not to fight anyone once they've fallen." Itachi was confused. Why was Shisui killing helpless people?

Aki moved over to the boys and put on hand on Itachi's shoulder to pull him away from Shisui, who then continued to move amongst the fallen soldiers. The fight was over. Most of the rebels had fallen, a lot had run off into the night.

The moans and cries of the fallen slowly faded into silence as Shisui finished with the last of the wounded. The captured rebels watched the scene with wide eyes, cowering in fear at the thought that they would be next. Yota moved to stand next to Itachi, transfixed by Shisui's methodical examination of all the fallen. When Shisui finished he returned to Aki, who looked down at the boy and smiled.

"Good job, Shisui." He looked down at the boys and continued to smile. "The village does not have the resources to care for these men. They would have spent several days in pain, then succumbed to infection. It would have been a very painful death. Do you understand?" He saw Itachi and Yota still didn't believe him, but weren't going to argue. Sighing he patted Shisui on the shoulder to reassure him.

Cold engulfed the four ninja's feet and ankles and they quickly looked down, expecting another attack. However, it was water.

"I guess that means Kisame and Zabuza have found their targets. Let's hope they kill them.

"Aki!" Yurina's voice came over the radio, "I found no more evidence of rebel forces. Kisame and Zabuza have engaged and taken out the leader and his henchmen. However, there was a large wall of water heading south from here. Are you guys okay?"

Aki smiled again. "Yeah, it's just ankle deep here at the front gate. I'll send Yota and Itachi to check the shrine." He looked down and two boys and they nodded in understanding and took off.

Shisui put his poison away and looked over at the men he had just killed with an expression of guilt.

"Shisui. You did the right thing. A quick painless death is what we all deserve. A death given without hate, without emotion. In time Itachi will understand."

Shisui looked up at Aki and the expression of hatred on the boys face made Aki step back in shock. "Keep your filthy hands off Itachi. And tell your 'friend' to stay away from him as well." He walked away to east, away from the village to look for stragglers. He could feel Aki's calculating gaze burning into him.

Shisui did not poison those men to give them a quick death, but because his mother had told him to practice and perfect his attacks. With most poisons the subject would be able to continue fighting for a few minutes. A desperate man is a hard adversary to beat. He was looking for a poison that would be quick enough to act in a few seconds. As he had moved amongst the fallen he had pulled various vials of formulas out of his bag, testing their viability. Testing the different poisons on those men was not something he wanted to do, as Aki assumed, to ease the death of the enemy. He did it to protect his ninja comrades.

Shisui suspected Aki was up to something and after watching the man interact with Itachi these last few weeks it was getting to be more and more obvious. Itachi had been affected by the valley of corpses and continued to have nightmares. Aki had been making himself available to offer words of comfort and encouragement, making hints at how neglected the boy must be if he was so traumatized.

Itachi had a tendency to be distant and hard to get close to. However, he seemed to be warming up to Aki's company. This worried Shisui. He had seen Aki speaking to a man several months ago who just seemed…evil. The look of him had made the boy shudder. Bandages covered the man's head and one eye, and he had an "X" scar on his chin. His right arm was in a sling and he was leaning on a cane. But it was the way he held himself. So confident, yet at peace with himself. So powerful, yet with an outward appearance of weakness.

Aki had always been "preachy". He lectured a lot on the importance of fighting without hatred, burying emotions to prevent aggressions and his "quick death" philosophy of war. However, after that day Aki became even worse. He started to correct them more, refine their attacks and he even refused missions. However, he also got them a lot of other missions that didn't involve the usual channels.

Usually when a mission was pending they would meet the Hokage and he would explain it. However, about a quarter of their missions would be last minute and did not involve meeting the Hokage. Not to mention the fact that they were sworn to secrecy and told never to speak of them outside the group. Those missions were always executions. Something was going on.

'Perhaps I should have mentioned that to Fugaku. Yeah, I should've.' Shisui thought to himself as he kicked at a tree root.

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Next week: The rebels strike again, only this time they are better prepared. Shisui and his sensei mince words again over Itachi.

Sorry about not showing Kisame or Zabuza fighting, but you'll get more Kisame later with Akatsuki so I hope you don't mind too much. XD

A couple people have asked so here's a reminder: this story is planned to end the night of the Uchiha massacre, then there will be one epilogue. Also, I'm going to update the first chapter, I still don't like it….

I have a sequel in mind. It will be an AU (alternate universe) in which Itachi fails to kill his clan and Fugaku and the Uchiha fight and win control of Konoha. For some reason this fascinates me, and writing a sequel about Akatsuki sounds uneventful. The current story still has a ways to go, which is good because the initial outline for the sequel resembles a list of plot holes instead of a story. It'll take a while to figure out a good plot as well as work out Itachi's role in it. After all, he's going to be very upset he failed, and the Uchiha are going to be very upset over his betrayal. Basically the last chapter will be rewritten to become the first chapter of the sequel. That is all I know for sure right now XD

Please review!


	31. Chapter 31 Wishes

In the previous chapter the two Konoha teams reached their destination and began their mission to defend the village. The rebels were defeated, but…

Thanks for all the favs and reviews!

I updated the first chapter, the small prologue is more in line with "actual events" and I added some notes based on questions reviewers have had, and I rewrote some of the events so that they hopefully make more sense. Go back and read it and let me know what you think. There are still some little things I should update in some of the other chapters, but maybe later XD

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto.

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Chapter 31 - Wishes

Three weeks passed quickly for the two Konoha teams. They had stayed after the rebel leaders were killed because the prisoners said there would be another attack. Mist had sent word to the two swordsmen to stay in the village until the danger was passed, must to their distaste. Waiting around for a battle was not their style; they were better suited for attack.

The shrine had been badly damaged in the first attack. Part of the damage was from Yuri's earth jutsu. The rebels had eight ninja mercenaries attack the small building and Yuri had pulled roots out of the ground to capture four of them, allowing the other four to be captured by Sana Nara and Chikato Ishizu. Unfortunately the tree next to the shrine was shallow rooted and when she pulled on the roots it collapsed onto the shrine.

The elders blew it off, saying if the tree was that easy to knock down then the high winds that came with the spring and autumn storms would have eventually done it anyway. Yuri still felt bad and spent all her free time using her earth jutsu's to help clear the tree away and tear down the remains of the shrine so a new one could be erected.

The battle was put into perspective, though, when the scroll room was uncovered several days later. The scroll had been knocked off its stand and lay open on the floor.

It was blank.

The elders tore the room apart looking to see if another scroll existed, but in the end it was verified that the blank scroll was the correct one. Yurina and Aki, both of whom were very skilled at seals worked over the scroll for days. Finally they uncovered the key that revealed the writing.

"_You who would fight for vainglorious honor need know only two things: Death knows nothing of vanity nor glory nor honor; and the Ice Clan exacts its retribution by creating this scroll."_

The town was in an uproar. The elders tried to hide the scroll contents, but it leaked out anyway. Word that another attack was imminent embittered the residents even further.

The Konoha and Mist ninjas saw the scroll as an ironic tribute to a dead clan, but ultimately unimportant to the mission. They still had to protect the village. On a personal level things were different. Why would the elders keep such a thing? The clan had been extinct for nearly eighty years – or so the rumors claimed. It had been placed in the shrine back then and none of the elders were old enough to remember the event. Everything they knew came from traditions or journals passed down through the generations.

Plans for a new shrine were drawn up in record time. It was to be a shrine to the Ice Clan to help appease their souls as well as the souls of those who had died in defense of the scroll.

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Yota was the first to encounter the second group of rebels. He was out on a patrol with two guards from the village. They were walking through the woods surrounding the village. Spring was in its early stages and buds were beginning to form on the barren trees. The bright afternoon sun did little to chill the air though.

Nine men suddenly surrounded them, cutting them off from the village. Yota put his finger on the transmitter strapped around his neck and spoke quietly, "Nine rebels, sector 39. Cut off."

Yelling at the two guards to stand back Yota ran forward toward the village. If he could break through the perimeter then the guards would be out of the way and he could use his 64-palm attacks.

As he approached the rebels broke formation and allowed the guards to pass through, then closed in around Yota.

"We are here for you, boy. You won't take us so easily. You have two weaknesses and we have been trained to take advantage of both." The man spoke arrogantly, then laughed. Yota noticed that they were standing too far away from him. He needed them closer for the 64 palm attack to work.

The rebels started to shoot senbon at him, trying to hit his back. Yota kept moving, suddenly realizing that they did know his one weakness. It was a spot between his shoulder blades that his 360 degree vision could not see. However he was wracking his brain over what his second weakness could be.

Yota lifted one palm and sent his chakra through it. A gust of wind, equivalent to a 100 mph blew out toward several of the rebels. Three were knocked into the forest and lay unconscious on the ground.

The remaining six fell back and regrouped. Yota turned around to face them, intending on using the same attack. However, as soon as he raised his hand he was pulled to the ground and his legs and arms were restrained by two men who were climbing out of the forest floor.

"That is your second weakness, boy. It is not a fault of your lineage, but of your own indiscretion. You did not extend your vision underground. That is where me and my companion here have been waiting for you." He laughed as Yota struggled, cursing himself for not paying closer attention. There weren't nine ninja's, there were eleven.

Yota continued to struggled, kicked with his feet and twisting his body. Desperation started to kick in and he doubled his efforts. The two men were started to have difficulty holding him.

"Hurry up and get over here!" The rebel holding his arms yelled. Yota's heart was pounding as the six rebels walked confidently up to him.

"That was too easy. Are you sure it's not a clone?" The man who spoke was not a ninja, but had experienced several of their tricks.

"Yeah. Positive." The answer came from the man holding Yota's legs.

Yota heard the sound of a sword being drawn and quickly turned his head to face a man who now stood over him. "Sorry about this kid, but your head and those of the two Uchiha and the plant girl will fund our revolution. Your deaths will not be in vain, we will remember you as heroes who helped us on the first steps toward victory. The scroll will be ours and we will have power!"

"You fool!" Yota yelled. "The scroll was empty and the seal on my head will fry my brain as soon as I die! You won't get one ryou for what is left!"

"Lies! I expect you to die with honor and accept your defeat." The man lifted the sword, then paused as voices came through the woods. Yota kept struggling to escape. If only he could get his hands closer together to form a sign he might be able to get away.

"Quick! Before they get here!"

The sword was plunged into Yota's chest and he gasped in shock. The pain was intense and bright lights flashed before his eyes. The men quickly let him go and stood up. Yota brought his hands together, but he couldn't move his fingers. His arms dropped helplessly to the ground.

"Yota!" Yuri screamed and tried to run forward but was blocked when one of the rebels aimed a kick at her, sending her flying back ten feet.

Yota turned his head and saw Itachi and Shisui looking at him in horror. Then Itachi slowly turned to face the rebels. Every time Yota had seen his younger teammate fight it had been with an expressionless face. This time… The look of pure hatred that crossed the boys features and the dark chakra that emanated from his small body made everyone in the area stop what they were doing and look at him. The fear that gripped the hearts of the rebels and ninja was so overwhelming that no one could move. Chikato and Sana collapsed onto the ground gripping their chests, trying to breath.

Yota smiled and tried to laugh, but blood exploded from his mouth instead. He was going to die, he knew that now. But first… he would see his attackers die and they were going to have a very unpleasant death.

Itachi's mind tried to wrap itself around the fact that his teammate… his friend was laying on the ground dying. It wouldn't though. He couldn't accept it. Rage engulfed him instead. Itachi had been mad before. Plenty of times, but he had never felt the intense emotion he was now. Looking into the eyes of the rebels it registered that one of them had also kicked Yuri. No one injured his teammates.

Yurina quickly pulled the other kids back, letting Shisui stand in front of them as a buffer. She was suddenly afraid of what Itachi would do if he didn't get his satisfaction from killing the rebels. Chikato and Sana were immobilized by fear. Yuri had dropped her guard and been kicked in the chest and was having trouble breathing and was bleeding badly. Aki was using healing chakra on the three kids to help ease their discomfort, but he wanted to get to Yota.

Kisame and Zabuza showed up a minute later, but quickly backed off a few steps in shock. The chakra coming from the nine-year old boy in front of them was unexpected.

"Don't interfere." Yurina whispered. The two swordsmen nodded in understanding, then sat down to watch. They were used to such demonstrations of power and were interested in how the boy would handle it.

Itachi stared at the rebels for a good five minutes. His rage immobilized him and slowly he forced his brain to calm down enough to rationally decide on a course of action. He realized his sharingan was already activated and that he was holding his new sword in his right hand. He saw he had a clear route to all the rebels and that his comrades were out of the way. He also saw that the rebels were a mixture of semi-skilled shinobi and unskilled mercenaries. He felt Shisui standing twenty feet behind him, ready to pounce if Itachi needed help. That reassured him, even though he knew he wouldn't need help. Shisui was always covering his back. Yota… like Yota used to do…

The movements couldn't be tracked by anyone without the sharingan and even Yota had trouble watching. Itachi's speed as he wove in and out of the rebel ranks was a blur as each of them fell to the forest floor with their stomachs slashed open. It was one of the most painful wounds and most difficult to heal. Innards fell out and the men moaned and cried out in pain.

Itachi stood over them, watching the blood drip off of his sword. It was hypnotic. He could feel his own heart synchronizing to the drips as he stared. As they slowed, so did his heart and he couldn't help but wonder if it would stop when the sword stopped dripping. Out of the corner of his eye he saw one of the fallen rebels raise a kunai, intending to kill himself. Itachi quickly kicked the weapon out of his grip and cut off the man's hand. He had no intention of letting any of the murderers get out of this life that quickly. Although… the blood spurting from the now handless limb was probably going to kill him pretty quick anyway.

Yurina and Shisui ran over to Yota, who was now barely conscious. By all rights he should have been dead by now, but Yota was using everything inside of him to hold on long enough to see his revenge. Itachi walked up and fell down to his knees next to the dying boy.

Yota spit up some more blood before he could finally speak. "Sorry… never had…rematch. Give him… body…"

Itachi watched as the boy stopped breathing. Looking at Yuri he reached over to her and put his hand on her chest where she was bleeding. She put her hand over his.

"I'm okay, little brother." She said quietly. He dropped his hand. She had never called him that before and he felt a lump forming in his throat.

Shisui cleared his throat, "Itachi and I can take care of the bodies. We'll burn Yota's so that he can't be…" he meant to say "plundered" but he couldn't get the word out.

Yurina gathered everyone up and herded them back to the village. Aki was about to offer to stay with the boys but a dark glance from Shisui shut him up. Kisame was the last to leave. He eyed the two boys with a guarded expression. Itachi's skill with his Katana was extraordinary. Each of the fallen men had been cut open in exactly the same spot. And the speed of the attack made it even that much more extraordinary. Too bad he was from Konoha.

When Itachi and Shisui were alone they sat for a long time staring at Yota's body. Finally Shisui spoke quietly. "We have to tell Madara that Yota is dead. Remember? He told us a while back he wanted his body to be given to some guy called Sasori."

"No. We'll burn it." Itachi's voice had a tone of finality about it.

"We can't just ignore his last request."

"He hated Konoha. His dearest wish was to see the village fall. He blamed them for the deaths of his parents."

"Who is Sasori?" Shisui didn't see any harm in following his friend's wish and was a little upset that Itachi saw otherwise.

"I don't know, but Yota seemed to think he could make his dream come true. I'm pretty sure he is a subordinate of Madara, though."

"We could get into a lot of trouble if we don't call him then." Truth be told, Shisui was a hell of a lot more scared of pissing off Madara than of an imagined threat against Konoha. He couldn't imagine Yota's dead body being good for anything even remotely resembling an attack.

Itachi sighed. "Okay."

Shisui concentrated on his bracelet and soon Madara answered. He told them to hide the body, saying that someone would be along to collect it in a few days.

The two boys burned the rebels' bodies, then dug a shallow grave to hold Yota. Returning to the hotel they were told to pack. They would be leaving the next morning.

That evening Itachi snuck out of the hotel and made his way back to the grave. Using his hands he pulled the dirt away until the body was exposed. Looking down at Yota one last time he realized how dissimilar the two of them were. The only thing they had in common was the quest for power. They didn't like the same movies or books, their beliefs often clashed, but most of all, Yota wanted to see Konoha destroyed. If his parents died because the Hyuuga treated them so badly then why was that Konoha's fault?

Sighing Itachi stood up and formed the hand signs for the phoenix fire jutsu. He sent two bursts into Yota's body and stood several feet away, watching it burn. He would miss Yota, though. He had killed the men who had killed him, but the aching in his heart was still there. A distant memory of his father asking him what death was suddenly came into focus. The answers he had given then… when Obito had died… were so different from what he would say if he were asked the same question today. When only ashes and a few bones were left he pushed the loose dirt over them and walked to a nearby stream to bathe and wash out his clothes.

Aki had followed Itachi. He could hide his chakra as long as the boy didn't use his Sharingan. He watched as Itachi unburied, burned, then re-buried the body. He saw as the boy washed the dirt and smell of death from his body and clothes then dried off with Kisame's jutsu. The boy had even had the foresight to bring soap with him. However, why wasn't the body burned earlier? Did Shisui tell him not to for some reason? Were they planning on giving the body to someone? He knew Shisui's first loyalty was to Fugaku Uchiha, the chief of the Uchiha clan. He wondered if the body, the secrets of the Byakugan, was to be delivered to the Uchiha. But surely they already knew all the secrets. The Sharingan was the ultimate power in Konoha. It was the village's last defense, which was why the Uchiha were made policemen by the second Hokage.

However, Itachi had snuck out on his own and burned the body. Whatever Shisui was planning Itachi had clearly not agreed to. Aki smiled. He was worried that Shisui's hold over the boy would make it hard to get close to Itachi, but clearly that was not going to be the case.

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The trip back to Konoha was a bit longer than when they left. Kisame had told them to walk to the eastern coast of the Water country island and catch a ship to the west coast instead of walking straight to the west coast. He said there would be fewer rebels and the roads were easier to navigate. His advice was welcomed and even though they had to wait two days for a ship and it took three days to sail to the west coast they were happy to be heading home.

The old Senju saw them at the west coast port an hour before they were to board a ship for the trip back to Fire country. The old man knew, as soon as he walked up to the small group, what had happened. He expressed his condolences and promised to leave an offering that evening when he visited the local shrine. He questioned Itachi and Shisui about their trip and closed his eyes in frustration when he heard about the valley of corpses. In his youth he had seen many battlefields like that. It had driven the Senju to find a peaceful alternative, and the Uchiha, wishing for the same peace had joined them. However, several did not want peace. They longed for the thrill of battle and the power it gave them. He was one of them. Madara was another. But these boys, standing before him. Their eyes held only sorrow and fear.

After giving the boys his farewells and wishing them calm seas and quick journey he walked toward the nearest bar. It wasn't open yet, but they always let him in anyway. Being old did have it's benefits… but those boys would never find out about them. Sitting down at a booth he muttered under his breath as a single tear dripped out of his eye, "One down, two to go."

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The relief they felt when they entered the front gates of Konoha was overwhelming. Itachi looked at the village spread out before him and smiled.

"Welcome home, Itachi, Shisui." Fugaku was standing next to Hiashi Hyuuga and the Third Hokage.

The two boys bowed to him in response. Shisui saw Toshiro standing a few feet behind Fugaku and smiled at him. Toshiro smiled back.

The Third spoke a few words of condolence and informed them that a memorial service would be held in two days. It seemed that Yurina and Aki had already written up their mission reports and they handed them over. The Hokage then gave the teams two weeks off to recover.

Hiashi was the person Itachi was hoping would not speak to him. He had a strong dislike for the man due to Yota's experiences and wasn't recovered enough to listen to false sympathy. If he ever would be, that is. However, the man did speak, in a calm deliberate voice he told the teams that the Hyuuga clan would be having a memorial service the next day.

Itachi couldn't keep his mouth shut, "Considering how disrespectfully his parent's remains were treated I believe your pathetic attempt at a 'respectful' service for Yota would only be half-way acceptable if their bodies were disinterred and re-buried with the honor accorded to the deceased."

Fugaku chuckled at his son's declaration.

Hiashi blinked twice in shock. His hand lifted a couple inches before he stopped it. If this were any other kid he would have beat him senseless for being disrespectful. However, if he hit Itachi, the Uchiha chief's son, the repercussions would be disastrous. He had seen Fugaku fight and while the man was a calm tactician who could think a hundred moves ahead, he was also a very vicious fighter who never gave up. A true shinobi in every sense of the word. He doubted he could beat him in a serious fight.

"I cannot do that Itachi. I do not expect you to understand. However, your presence is requested, or _required_ however you wish to put it, at the memorial service tomorrow by the side branch. They are handling the ceremony." Hiashi turned around and walked away.

Two side branch members had been standing behind him and they locked eyes with Itachi for a couple minutes before speaking. "We would request all of you come. I promise it will be worth your while, and his."

Itachi sighed, "We will come. Thank-you."

"That was very well handled, Itachi. I am proud of you. Hiashi is a difficult man to speak to." Fugaku put his hand on Itachi's head, tilting his head so he could look into his eyes. The boy was tired, that was obvious. But he was also sad. "It's okay, Itachi, let's go home. Mikoto is cooking something special and Sasuke is climbing the walls, convinced we are hiding you somewhere."

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The memorial service at the Hyuuga temple was well attended. The Hyuuga sitting next to Itachi was the same one who had spoken to him the day before. He told the boy that it looked like almost every side branch member was in attendance. No main branch members showed up.

He was also interested in why Itachi and Shisui, who were members of a main branch household would attend a service for a side branch member. Itachi couldn't think of an answer and said "Why wouldn't I?" instead. The man smiled.

"Stay after the service. I have something to show you." He winked at Itachi then returned his attention to the monk who was reciting a prayer at the front of the temple.

True to his word, after the ceremony the man showed Itachi and Shisui to a building on the temple grounds and took them inside.

"This is where the urns of the deceased are kept. I heard your words yesterday and… well, I got some of my cousins together and we dug up his parents and had a small service for them. Their urns are in here." He pointed to a shelf at the back of the building, then reached his hand to the back of a shelf, withdrawing a plain urn with no writing on it. "They are here now, respectfully buried. I hope… I hope that can be seen as some sort of appeasement, however small it may be. Too little, too late. What we did was wrong." He pushed the urn back into place and settled several older urns around it.

Itachi and Shisui frowned. The move was too late. Yota would never know about it. Itachi finally spoke in a small voice. "I think… I think it is what he would have wanted. Having his parents buried out there, outside of the temple bothered him more than anything. My clan differentiates between side and main branch, but not in abilities. We are all allowed to succeed. It's sad… I wish there was something…"

The man smiled. "You'd better get going now. You're both too young to be spending time in a mausoleum." They bowed to the Hyuuga and left.

The memorial service at the memorial stone was also well attended. The Hokage presided over the formalities and Fugaku had required the entire clan to attend. The Hyuuga side branch was also in attendance, although, once again, no main branch members showed up. For some reason the Hyuuga clan members seemed happy to see the Uchiha, especially Fugaku, Mikoto and Itachi.

Itachi asked his father what was going on.

"By showing up we are making the statement that branch membership is not important to one's self worth. Basically we are a slap in the face to the Hyuuga main branch. The side branch knows that are laughing at their lords." Fugaku was smirking as he spoke.

"So you don't care about someone dying, just about whether you can make a statement or not." Itachi jumped when his father put his hand on his shoulder, expecting to be hit for his insolence instead of receiving a friendly touch.

"Not at all. But the Hyuuga are valuable allies. Not taking advantage of that would be like closing one eye and wondering why you can't see out of it anymore. Besides, there was nothing unusual about Yota's parent's situation. We get called to settle domestic disputes on the Hyuuga compound at least once a week. Frankly I'm getting tired of dealing with it." Itachi blinked his eyes in shock at his father's words. It was a very candid answer.

"I understand father. It makes perfect sense." Itachi remembered the words Yurina had spoken to Yota on his first mission and he understood more of what she was trying to get across. Yota was not alone, nor was he singled out.

"_I'm sorry. But the fact is life is hard. It's harder for ninja children most of all. The laws of Fire country that protect civilian children don't pertain to us. And even if we were civilians… parents still abandon their children, beat them harshly, and children will always be found living on the streets. If you think you are special or singled out because of your past, Yota, you need to think twice and get a clue. If there was a way…if there was a way to have a world without war, without ninja, a peaceful world, I would follow that path in an instant. But until then, we are all ninja and we have to find a way to at least deal with it."_

"However," Itachi thought a few seconds before speaking again, choosing his words carefully, "if they think that the only reason they live like that is because it is someone else's fault then no matter what we do they will always be resentful and filled with hate."

"Wise words, Itachi." Fugaku smirked again. "However, I do know a way to free them and improve their lives. They also know as well. Unfortunately, if they act on it they will be killed."

Itachi looked up at his father and wrinkled his brow in confusion. Fugaku patted his son on the shoulder again and went back to listening to the Hokage's speech. 'What is father planning?' Itachi thought to himself.

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"Itachi! I am in the woods. Come to me. NOW!" The force of the command woke the young boy. It was Madara's voice and he was madder than Itachi had ever heard. He quickly dressed and ran out of the house. Shisui was waiting at the compound gates and they both ran into the woods without speaking.

Itachi had a feeling what the meeting was going to be about. He just hoped that he hadn't gotten Shisui into trouble.

Madara saw the two boys run into the small clearing. A very determined Itachi and a confused Shisui stood in front of him. Judging by their emotions he decided that Itachi must have acted on his own.

"Itachi. Why did you do it? You disobeyed a direct order." Itachi stared at the tall man and said nothing. Shisui looked at his cousin, worry sweeping over him. What had Itachi done?

"I have no excuse." Itachi finally spoke. "I will accept my punishment but I will not apologize."

Shisui interrupted, "What happened? What did you do Itachi?"

"I snuck out of the hotel and burned Yota's corpse." The words were spoken without emotion.

Shisui gasped. "I… how? I was watching you… I thought I was… Madara It was my fault. I should have… should have…"

"No! Shisui, I am capable of making my own decisions. I decided this on my own. By acting on my own only I should be punished."

Madara watched as Shisui tried to stick up for his cousin and Itachi admitted to protecting Shisui by acting on his own. Such loyalty was to be commended. "Boys. I believe it is time for me to show you one of the many techniques that are part of the Mangekyou Sharingan."

Madara's eyes changed from the Sharingan to the Mangekyou Sharingan and the boys found themselves in a world of red with black shadows. Shisui was sitting on the ground, hands tied behind his back. Itachi was spread-eagle on a cross. Madara was standing in between them holding a long sword.

"Welcome to the world of Tsukiyomi." He lifted his sword and plunged it into itachi's chest. The boy yelled in pain and Shisui screamed at Madara to stop.

"This will not kill you. I will stab you twelve times. I will stop anytime before that if you beg my forgiveness, or if Shisui pleads for me to stop." Madara raised the sword again.

"Shisui." Itachi gasped out. "Don't you dare say anything. This is my punishment and I will take it! I snuck out on my own to protect you from this! Ahhh!" The sword plunged in a second time and he yelled.

"In this realm I control everything. When you return to the real world you will have no marks on your body, but your mind will remember everything and, of course, it will register the pain as being real." The sword plunged in a third time.

Shisui struggled hard to keep his mouth shut. 'It will be over soon. It is what Itachi wants. I must allow him his dignity and stay silent.' The words were repeated in his mind every time the sword was plunged into Itachi's body.

Finally it was over and the dark night replaced the red world. The boys collapsed onto the ground. Madara kneeled down on the ground in front of them. "Do you understand why the Mangekyou Sharingan is so powerful?"

"Yes." Both boys gasped out.

"My associate was very disappointed at not getting Yota's body. I was made to understand, by a very irate puppet-master that it was the boy's desire. You are lucky, I guess, that Yota was a Hyuuga. The puppet would have been almost powerless because the seal placed on their heads fries the brain upon death."

Itachi looked up at Madara in confusion. That hadn't occurred to him. Yota couldn't have been used to attack Konoha and if he had thought about it instead of reacting he would have realized that.

"You denied your friend his last wish, Itachi." Madara continued to rub it in. Itachi wondered if he was trying to bait him.

As a force or a distraction. It mattered little. Yota's body would not be used to attack Konoha. "I regret nothing that I have done. I have accepted my punishment." The words barely came out as Itachi continued to suffer the mental after-affects of being stabbed twelve times. He wondered if Yota had felt this much pain when he had been dying, and if so was he glad when his eyes closed for the last time? But then again, because he felt the pain it meant that he was alive. And alive was better than dead.

Madara lowered his head and smiled behind his mask. "Well spoken Itachi. And you, Shisui, you are to be commended for allowing Itachi to accept his punishment like a man. I believe you have learned many lessons tonight, some of which may not be entirely obvious to you yet."

Itachi tried to stand up, but fell down. Madara stood up and picked the young boy up setting him on Shisui's back. "You'll be fine after a good night's sleep. Take some of your pills when you get home. Meet me back here at 10pm tomorrow night. We should do some training in the dark."

"Yes Madara." Shisui spoke quietly. Itachi was nearly unconscious on his back and muttered something as well.

Madara ran his hand through Itachi's hair then patted him on the back. "Good night, boys."

The oldest Uchiha gave a short laugh as Shisui walked away, carrying Itachi home. The "punishment" was nothing of the sort. Frankly, he could have cared less if Sasori got his puppet or not. What he wanted was to show the boys the power of the Mangekyou Sharingan. To show them what obedience would give them. As far as punishments for disobedience. Usually he did nothing. One of the reasons he had become so powerful and was so well liked by his followers was his easy-going attitude. He let people go their own way as far as they wanted. As long as it didn't compromise his own goals he looked the other way. But if it did… he would kill them. It was a simple equation and easy to live with.

How long would it take the boys to figure it out?

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Shisui reached out to open the front door of Itachi's house but it was locked. He put Itachi down and checked his pockets, but he didn't have a key.

"Damnit." Shisui cursed. Knocking on the door he called out. "Is anyone awake?"

A minute later Fugaku opened the door. He was dressed in his police uniform and wide awake even though it was almost 3am.

"What's wrong?" He saw Itachi on the ground next to the door. "What happened to Itachi?" He reached down and gathered his son up in his arms.

"Mangekyou Sharingan." Shisui followed the clan lord into Itachi's room. Itachi opened his eyes as he was laid on his bed.

Itachi's weak voice explained further, "I disobeyed Madara. I burned Yota's body. We were told to leave it alone. I snuck out so only I would be punished. He punished me by stabbing me twelve times. I refused to apologize and Shisui followed my request to not beg for me."

Fugaku listened to the story with interest. At first he was mad, but now he was curious. A punishment that sounded like Tsukiyomi. Usually, according to the stories, a person would be subjected to forty-eight or seventy-two hours of torture. But Madara had instead stabbed the boy twelve times. It sounded less like a punishment and more like a test or even a demonstration of power.

While Fugaku was thinking Shisui had gotten Itachi's pills and a glass of water, holding him up so he could drink. He felt guilty about what Itachi had done. He had protected him from Madara's wrath. What could he ever do to repay that?

Finally Fugaku broke out of his reverie and spoke. "I am proud of both of you. Itachi, you stood up for your beliefs and accepted the punishment for your disobedience without complaint. Shisui, you allowed Itachi to keep his dignity throughout the ordeal – something I am sure was not easy to do."

The two boys accepted the praise silently. Shisui bowed his head in acknowledgement. He was starting to get very sleepy. However…

"Lord Fugaku? If you have a minute, there is something that concerns me." Shisui looked over and saw that the drugs had already put Itachi to sleep.

"I am on my way to work, but let's go into the meeting room and talk. Sasuke will wake up if he hears us." Fugaku lead Shisui into a room down the hall.

"It's about Aki, my sensei." Shisui hesitated. He didn't want to speak about his sensei behind his back like this, but he felt he had no choice. "Have you ever seen a bandaged man with an 'X' on his chin? He has one eye and…"

Fugaku suddenly grabbed Shisui's shoulder and bent down to look him in the eye, his sharingan activating automatically. "Where did you see him?" His voice had an urgent tone about it that startled Shisui.

"Several weeks ago. Before the mission. I saw him and Aki talking in the courtyard of the Hokage's tower. Who…who is he?"

"It's better if you don't know. Has Aki been acting strange, or different?" Fugaku stood up and stepped back from the boy a couple feet.

"He has refused several missions, then contacted us at the last minute to go on execution missions. He does the execution and we sit around and wait for him. Also, one odd thing about those missions is that we don't go meet with the Hokage first. Aki tells us everything." Shisui and Fugaku were silent for a couple minutes.

"Lord Fugaku? Do you think Aki is acting with this man behind the Hokage's back?" Shisui was getting nervous.

"Do you know the names of the targets?" Fugaku asked quietly.

"No. He never tells us."

"Next time, find out then report back to me. Now go home and rest. And don't mention this to anyone else." Fugaku turned his back on the boy and started to walk out of the room.

"He's interested in Itachi. He's was spending a lot of time with him."

Fugaku gripped the bamboo frame of the door so hard that he crushed it. 'That _man_ was interested in Itachi? _Over my dead body._' He swore silently to himself then nodded his head once to show that he had heard Shisui.

'What have I done?' Shisui asked himself.

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Next week – Shisui spies on his sensei and then has to deal with the consequences of betrayal. Fugaku receives some surprising news and grabs Toshiro and the boys and heads off on a mission.

Please review!

I have to say it: Poor Itachi! I think he was manipulated so effectively that Danzou won the "evil mastermind of the year" award at the annual "Evil Convention" that year. Although Danzou doesn't consider himself evil, of course and he had to be kidnapped in order to attend the awards ceremony. Poor Sasuke! Madara is up for the award at this year's convention for his work on Sasuke. So sad. Orochimaru only ever got honorable mention… But despair not! Kishimoto will resolve all with a happy ending. Somehow… XD


	32. Chapter 32 Betrayal

Thanks for all the great reviews and for the fav's.

Okay! Get ready to read and review! It's fun! xD

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto. (Well this could mean two things, the first is that we are all owned by our jobs and they control when we get up, leave the house, come home, go on vacation, how long the vacation lasts, etc… The second thing is that Naruto & co. can only exist if Kishimoto writes about them so Naruto has taken Kishimoto hostage and is making him write continuously so he doesn't disappear. XD)

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Chapter 32 – Betrayal

Itachi was standing alone at the memorial stone when the sun rose over the trees. He had met Kabuto there an hour earlier and they had a short conversation about Yota. The older boy had brought an offering for his dead friend and Itachi had explained the battle that took Yota's life.

Kabuto had passed the graduation exam and was now a Genin. He had been on a mission working on a farm when the memorial service had been held, and he was going to be leaving on another mission in an hour. He had seemed sad, he had even shed a couple tears, but Itachi knew that with Kabuto you could never know for sure. He was a master of deception and enjoyed his little games.

"What are you doing here Itachi?" An older teenager walked up behind him and knelt down in front of the stone.

"Oh. Hi Kakashi. I was meeting someone here and they left already." Itachi looked over at the silver haired jounin. "Why are you here?"

"I come every morning to talk to Obito."

"Oh."

"Did you talk to Yota?" Kakashi was serious.

"No. I only talk to live people." Itachi sighed and looked back at the stone. He wasn't sure he understood what Kakashi was talking about.

"You probably don't remember much about your cousin. You were only four when he died."

"I remember him. I even have dreams about him. I also still have the soccer ball he gave me the day before he left. I… I killed it though."

"You… why?" Kakashi looked at the boy with an odd expression on his face.

"I guess I was throwing a tantrum and I stabbed it with my kunai. I kept it though. It's in my sweater drawer." Itachi didn't know why he was being so candid with his cousin's old teammate.

Kakashi put his hand on the boy's back. "It's okay, I'm sure Obito understood. He was like that, you know."

"Really?" Itachi smiled, but just a quickly it turned into a frown. "I miss him. And the others." Kakashi looked at the young boy. He didn't know who he was talking about when he mentioned "the others", but he did understand the boy's feelings.

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Shisui received a message to meet his team at the front gate the next morning at 8am. Sighing in frustration he pulled out his backpack and began stuffing it with weapons, clothes, poison kit, paperback book, scrolls, pens, ink, soap and a few other things. He always packed for a two week trip no matter how long it was actually scheduled.

He had been dreading the day this mission would come ever since he had spoken about Aki to Fugaku. He would have to spy on his sensei. He no longer held the respect for the man that he once did, but still. He was his sensei. He had saved him when they had been attacked by those Stone nin and he had looked after Itachi when they walked through the valley of corpses.

Shisui almost wished he hadn't said anything to Fugaku, but the way the clan chief acted when he heard the news was disturbing. Obviously the bandaged man with the "X" on his chin was a danger to the clan somehow. Threats had to be eliminated. Wasn't that what he had been taught? He wished he knew more about that man. It was hard to just sit back and take someone else's word that a person he didn't even know was evil. But he _had_ seen him once and he _had_ given him the creeps.

"I'm going to get dizzy if I keep thinking in circles." Shisui muttered to himself.

Three days later Shisui and his team were in River country. Once again Aki made no mention of the mission details. The three children occupied themselves by reading, playing Shogi and Go, and arguing with each other. Everything seemed pretty normal.

Shisui brought the take-out meal to the hotel room that night and slipped a mild sedative into Chikato and Sana's meals. It would make them sleepy and slightly irritable. To Aki it should look like they were being cranky and argumentative – in other words normal. Both children hated being cooped up and tended to react rather badly. They should fall into a deep sleep before the time Aki prepared to leave, and wake up in the morning with no side-effects. This would allow Shisui to disappear as well for a few hours.

Aki slipped out of the hotel room around 1am. Shisui activated his sharingan and followed. Masking his chakra he walked about forty feet behind his sensei through the deserted streets of the small village. The man made his way through several streets and even backtracked three times. He was either trying to throw off possible pursuers ('_They'd be stupid to fall for that._' Shisui thought to himself) or he was wasting time or looking for something.

Finally he arrived back at the hotel located across the street from the one they were staying at. Picking the lock he entered the building, re-locking the door behind him. Shisui waited a minute then entered the building as well. The hotel was apparently more of an apartment building. The front desk had a chart for monthly rates and a sign that indicated no rooms were available. Empty cans and what looked like syringes were scattered against the walls. The floor was filthy and the single bulb fixtures that hung down from the ceiling made the place look depressing and sad.

As Shisui walked up the staircase he could hear music and voices coming from some of the rooms. He continued to walk up to the fifth floor. Crouching behind the low wall that protected the staircase he watched as Aki picked the lock of a room at the far end of the hallway and entered, closing the door quietly.

Shisui stood up and walked to the room. His next move was going to be tricky, but he had to do it. He had seen a brief glance of the room when Aki opened the door and noticed a wall that separated the entryway from the living area. Shisui created a clone and disguised it as a vagrant he had seen earlier in the day. He told it to start singing and fall down a few times. He then used a teleportation jutsu to appear inside the hotel room, next to the wall. The burst of chakra the move required was explained away by Aki when he heard the vagrant stumbling around in the hallway.

Peaking around the wall he saw Aki approach a man who was sitting at a table. The man was sleeping, his face on the table and turned in Shisui's direction. That was lucky. Shisui quickly memorized the man's visage as Aki stabbed him in the heart with a poisoned senbon then beheaded him.

Aki suddenly straightened up. "Who's there!" He said sternly. He pulled out a kunai and started walking around the room, looking in the closet, under the bed, behind the TV cabinet. Shisui thought about messing with the man's head but if he was found out Aki would probably kill him. Then Fugaku would kill him. Then his father would kill him. Then his mother would kill him. Instead he made his clone cause another disturbance out in the hall as he teleported directly back into his hotel room across the street.

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Fugaku walked into Shisui's family's kitchen fifteen minutes after the boy had returned home. Shisui was already sitting at the table with a pad of paper and a pencil sketching the man he had seen his sensei assassinate. Kisa placed tea cups in front of them then went back to the laundry she had been hanging in the back yard. Shisui absent mindedly took a couple sips as he reviewed the picture, then added more detail.

The clan chief watched the boy as he concentrated over his sketch. He had seen the same concentration in Itachi, and was a little shocked to find out that Shisui could be just as anal over his tasks as his son. Fugaku pulled out his bingo book and started flipping through the pages. The man wasn't in it. Looking back at the image for verification he flipped through the book a second time, then closed it.

"I'm finished, my Lord." Shisui handed the sketch over. "Was he…in the bingo book?" He was nervous. He didn't want to hear that they had been party to an illegal assassination. That would be murder and ninja were punished for murder.

Fugaku saw the boy's hesitation and frowned. "No Shisui. I didn't see this face. I'll take the picture back to police station and identify the man. Shisui, if this was murder you and your teammates aren't in trouble. Only Aki. So don't worry too much." Fugaku tried to sound reassuring, but he understood that betraying his sensei was weighing heavily on the boy's shoulders.

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"Itachi! Wake up!" A child's high pitched voice screamed into his ear, making him jump. He quickly opened his eyes.

"Sasuke! Don't do that!" He tried to yell but he was too sleepy and it came out instead as a yawn. Looking at the clock he saw that he had only been in bed for about ninety minutes. However, it was almost 8:30 am which was probably why Sasuke was looking so awake.

"Father wants you to get up and go to the kitchen." Sasuke was smiling happily at his big brother. "Can you train me today? I wanna play with my new kunai."

Itachi climbed out of bed slowly. "It depends on what father has me doing today. I might not have time."

Sasuke had recently turned four and been given his first weapons set. Itachi remembered how happy he had been when he received his first set of weapons and smiled. Fugaku was spending a little bit of time training Sasuke, but no more than thirty minutes every few days. It wasn't nearly enough time as far as Sasuke was concerned and he had started bugging Itachi non-stop about it. Mikoto wasn't spending as much time teaching him either, as she did with Itachi. But then Sasuke had a much shorter attention span. So far all she had taught him was how to write his name and address and the names of his parents and brother.

Fully dressed and half awake Itachi walked into the kitchen and yawned.

"Ah Itachi! I have a task for you this morning." Itachi straightened up when his father addressed him. He was sitting at the table in the kitchen drinking tea and reading some documents. "I want you to stand at the front Konoha gate and call me with this radio when you see Aki approaching. Then distract the three Genin so they leave his side."

Itachi took a radio from Fugaku's outstretched hand and attached it to his neck, tapping it once to verify he had a connection. "What is going on?"

"Aki is being taken into custody for murder, leaving the village without permission and attempted corruption of a minor. He should be here in the next three hours." Fugaku's voice was professional and Itachi bowed in acknowledgement and, taking a piece of toast topped with a fried egg from Mikoto, he left the house.

Reaching the front gate Itachi looked at it disinterestedly then sat down in the dirt leaning back against the wall.

"You know, kid, we do have chairs over here." Itachi gave the ninja on guard duty a bored look.

"And tea." That got his attention. The toast and egg had made him thirsty. Standing up he walked over to the guard station and sat down, accepting a paper cup of luke-warm green tea.

"You look like death warmed over, boy. Did you get any sleep last night?" The guard smiled at Itachi.

"Ninety minutes. Then my little brother woke me up by screaming in my ear." Itachi's head still felt like cobwebs were weaving themselves around his brain. "I can't seem to wake up for some reason."

"What were you doing last night?"

"I've been training with my sharingan in the dark."

"Well, can't be helped then. It's only dark at night. Maybe you're catching that cold that's going around? That'll make you feel a bit 'out of it' for a few days." The guard was obviously very talkative.

Itachi thought about it for a minute. He did have a sore throat, but he didn't feel sick. "Can I make some more tea?" He liked his tea hot and the water in the pot had been warm.

"Sure. Knock yourself out. Do you play Shogi?"

Itachi heated up some water on the hotplate then played Shogi for the next two hours. The man, despite his continuous stream of chatter was actually quite good and Itachi woke up as his brain rejoiced at the challenge.

Aki and his three charges finally came into view and when Itachi looked at Shisui he saw a sad look pass over his cousin's face as he fell back a few feet. Itachi correctly guessed that his cousin knew what was happening already.

Putting his finger on the transmitter he called his father. "Target spotted."

"Acknowledged." His father's voice came over the ear piece.

"I guess that's it for today." The guard picked up the game pieces, then leaned back in his chair and prepared to watch the show.

"Hey guys! Come here! I got another head!" Itachi waved to the three children and Shisui and his teammates ran over to the guard shack. As soon as they reached it Fugaku, Toshiro and two other Uchiha police officers surrounded Aki.

"Aki Nojima!" Fugaku's strong voice rang out over the area. "You are under arrest for eight counts of murder, leaving the village without permission and three counts of attempted corruption of a minor for taking your three underage students with you while committing said crimes."

Aki's face contorted in rage and he looked at the Uchiha surrounding him. Suddenly his rage dissipated when he looked into the village. Shisui and Fugaku followed his gaze and saw an old man covered in bandages with an "X" on his chin and flanked by three masked ANBU. Shisui stepped back in shock and Fugaku growled under his breath.

"Fugaku Uchiha. You may be captain of the police force but you do not have authority to arrest my operatives." The man's voice sounded stern, but friendly.

The four Uchiha policemen stared at the man with hatred. The killing intent radiating off of them was so strong that all of the civilians nearby backed off in alarm, some ran into nearby buildings to hide, peaking out of windows and doorways.

The four children were quickly shoved into the guard shack by the guard as three passing Chuunin moved to stand in front of them.

Fugaku continued to stare at the stranger and the minutes ticked by slowly.

"What's going on Shisui?" Sana asked, worried.

"I don't know, Sana. Really. Do you, Itachi?" Shisui was confused by this turn of events. Fugaku arresting Aki was within the realm of believability although it had shocked him a little, but the bandaged man showing up was completely unexpected.

"No. I've never seen him before." Itachi spoke quietly, then sneezed.

Finally Fugaku gestured to Toshiro who moved forward and attached chakra inhibiting handcuffs to Aki's wrists, then kicked the back of his knees, forcing him to kneel.

"Danzou. Only ANBU and shinobi acting under the orders of a Hokage approved mission are out of my jurisdiction. This man fits none of those requirements. Also, ANBU are not allowed to be sensei. Your presence here is unacceptable. Leave. Or should I arrest you for attempting to interfere with an officer on duty?" Fugaku's words were laced with so much venom that Itachi wondered what this man had done to cause his father to hate him so much.

Danzou frowned and returned Fugaku's stare. Despite the killing intent radiating from the four Uchiha a small crowd had been quietly forming around the periphery. There were perhaps around a hundred people watching. The front gate was near the shopping district and since it was nearly lunch time there were a lot of people out.

"The Uchiha seem to be overstepping their bounds. Perhaps justice is no longer a part of their police work? Or do they consider themselves to be above justice?" Danzou spoke just loud enough for everyone to hear. Several people in the crowd started mumbling and nodding their heads. Expressions of disapproval appeared on several faces.

Fugaku was fuming but kept his face passive. He knew Danzou was trying to drum up more anti-Uchiha sentiment. He suspected a lot of the people in the gathering throng of pedestrians were probably "plants", put there to echo Danzou's poisoned words. His peripheral vision saw that the four children were being protected by several Chuunin who had placed themselves in front of the Genin.

Smirking, Fugaku thought about the irony. The situation in the guard shack was what the village was about. Protecting each other. He doubted the Chuunin even knew the Genin, but still they did their duty. Danzou on the other hand. He worked in the shadows, as a ghost, moving around in secret, killing in secret. The Hokage wasn't even aware of everything the man did. How could that be considered "protection"? Fugaku didn't know the man's goals and guessing was proving to be difficult. However, several things were clear. He had a strong influence on the elder council, the Hokage hated him but rarely went against his council, and, most importantly, he hated the Uchiha with a vengeance.

Attempts to guess the man's goals were further complicated by Aki's mentorship of Shisui and his attempts to get close to Itachi. Why did he want the two children? As spies? To turn them against their clan for some perverted reason? Fugaku knew how to find the answer and gave Danzou a look that a cat normally gives a mouse that he has just cornered.

"I wonder, Danzou, if you are as great as you make yourself out to be, why the First and Second Hokage's chose Sarutobi as the Third Hokage - a mere child – instead of you – a man in his prime. There must have been something they knew about you at the time. Something dark and unpleasant. Something you don't want your followers to find out about. I do find it odd that as soon as the Fourth took his robes you scampered back into the shadows to lay low, only emerging again upon his death. Was there something Minato knew about you as well? It appears to me, Danzou, that you owe your very existence to Sarutobi." As Fugaku spoke Danzou became madder and madder. The normally even-tempered man berated himself for his emotion but he couldn't suppress his anger.

The crowd began to mutter again. Fugaku's words had the desired effect as he saw the crowd's sentiments turn against Danzou. He motioned to the three other policemen to quickly escort Aki away. The crowd parted quickly as the four Uchiha walked down the road. Danzou had disappeared. Probably with a teleportation jutsu.

"You kids okay?" One of the Chuunin asked with a kind voice. "Would you like us to walk you home?"

Itachi sneezed again. "Shisui and I are fine." He sniffed.

"Um… I'm fine too." Chikato said quickly, "My parents live in the next street anyway." He took off running.

Sana sighed. "I'll go home later. I think I'll just go train by myself for a while. I knew something was wrong. I wanted to ask my mother but… she's got other things on her mind and I didn't want to worry her. Thanks, Shisui. I'm sure you're the one who took care of everything." She walked back out of the gate then took off running.

The Chuunin watched her leaved. "Is she okay?"

"Yeah, her parents are…" Shisui caught himself. Sana wouldn't want her families dirty laundry aired in public.

"See you around then." The man smiled and walked off.

Itachi and Shisui walked back to the compound in silence. Shisui was deep in thought and Itachi was getting sleepy again. Not to mention his throat was now burning and every time he sneezed it hurt.

Crawling back into his bed seconds after entering the house, Itachi was just getting comfortable when his mother walked in holding a small tray with a cup. "Sasuke has a sore throat so you probably do to, considering how much time you spend together."

Itachi smiled. "Yeah. I guess we caught the same cold." He accepted the medication his mother gave him. One pill was designed to lessen the effects of the cold symptoms and make the person well faster. She also gave him something to lessen his fever. It was still mild, but Mikoto worried.

"You stay in bed and rest. I'll make sure no one wakes you up again." She gave him a kind smile and put a glass of water on his nightstand then left the room.

Itachi tossed and turned for a long time though. The bandaged man – Danzou – was hated so much by his father. He was a threat to the clan, but how? He wished he had asked Shisui what was going on, but his brain was feeling a little fuzzy still and he hadn't thought about it.

"This is stupid. Ninja have to work in all kinds of situations. I shouldn't be laying here pretending to be sick. I need to find out what is going on." He stood up and walked out into the hall. He heard his mother greeting his father. Apparently he had just walked into the kitchen.

"Mother! Big brother isn't in bed! Tell him to go back to bed!" Sasuke stood in the hallway pointing an accusing finger at Itachi, who stood staring in shock at his younger brother.

Mikoto walked into the hall and put her hands on her hips. Fugaku put his head through the kitchen doorway. Itachi suddenly felt like he had been caught doing something bad and was very confused and a little embarrassed.

"Itachi!" Mikoto yelled at him, "Get back into bed right now! How do you expect to get better if you don't let your body rest?"

"But…but I want to talk to Shisui. I can't lay in bed all day." He spoke evenly but the words hurt his throat when he spoke.

"Listen to yourself. You can barely speak." Her voice was much softer now as she pushed him back to his room. "Shisui isn't going anywhere for a while and he probably doesn't want to catch your cold anyway. Although the way this virus is going around he probably already has it. Now you stay here in bed and don't make me tie you up!" She pulled the covers over her son then left the room.

Muffled voices could be heard from the hallway. "Would you really tie him up?" Sasuke sounded scared.

"No sweety, I was just scaring him into behaving. He could release himself in a minute anyway so it would be pointless." Mikoto reassured Sasuke and Itachi couldn't help smiling. Sasuke could be so oblivious at times.

"I didn't realize he was sick. Why didn't you tell me this morning?" Fugaku's voice still sounded angry from the debacle at the front gate.

"I didn't realize either until after you guys left and Sasuke started sneezing. Itachi's symptoms seem worse though. Does Dr. Yakushi know about all our clan's…"

"He's too young. Have him checked out if you want, but Yakushi won't find anything. Besides, my son is perfectly healthy." Fugaku was not in a good mood and the hallway grew silent again. Apparently Mikoto was not going to argue with him.

Itachi wondered what they were talking about as he drifted off to sleep.

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Aki's first hearing was the day after his arrest. Shisui sat outside of the judges chambers next to Sana. The third member of the team was absent. For some reason the hearing was being held in private and in the elders had insisted on having it in the judge's chambers instead of a courtroom.

Fugaku had been pretty pissed off, but had no choice but to acquiesce. He now sat next to the prisoner Aki, who had refused to hire a lawyer. Danzou, the two leaders of the elder's council, the Third Hokage and a judge were the only people present.

Aki had not shown any nervousness or discomfort after his arrest. In fact, he had been insufferably arrogant. Lecturing the prison guards on proper ninja protocol and explaining in detail why police weren't considered shinobi anyway were just two of the annoying ways he found to pass his time until the hearing.

The judge called the meeting to order then asked Fugaku to read the list of charges, after which Aki was asked to enter a plea for each charge. He replied "not guilty" to all charges.

The two elders then asked, without waiting for permission from the judge to speak, why Fugaku arrested a man who was returning from an official mission.

"Aki was not on an official mission and did not have permission to leave the village. Not only that but he took three underage children with him – luring them away under false pretenses I might add. There are a lot more charges we could lay on him, but the murder charge should lock him up for the rest of his life anyway." Fugaku was all business and his sharingan was activated.

"All of the targets killed were in the bingo book." The elder Homura continued speaking.

"Show me their pictures." Fugaku threw his copy on the table in front of him. The sharp "bang" the book made as it came into contact with the table echoed off the walls of the small room.

The judge interrupted. "Fugaku. You will show respect. Homura and Koharu are distinguished members of the elder council and to accuse them of lying is inappropriate."

Homura picked up the book and leafed through it. Koharu looked over his shoulder and creased her brow. "Homura, I don't see any of them in the book. Does he have the correct version?"

Homura leafed to the back of the book and looked at a code on the back cover. "Aki, what is the meaning of this?" He threw the book to the prisoner who reached for the book with his handcuffed hands.

He leafed through the book as well, growing desperate. "I… I can't find them! They were here! I know they were!" He was silent for another couple minutes as he started to panic. "I saw the pictures! I got the order to hunt those men!" He stood up suddenly and pointed to the closed door. "That Uchiha! Shisui! He used Genjutsu to make me believe they were in the book! Ask him! He is a puppet of his clan and was using me! He even refused to burn Yota's body so he could hand over the Hyuuga secrets to Fugaku!"

Fugaku had to use every ounce of self control he had, and some he didn't know he had to keep from killing Aki right then and there. Not only was the claim of Genjutsu a boldfaced lie, but bringing up the incident with Yota linked Shisui directly to Madara. If the council even suspected Madara was still floating around the Uchiha would be in a lot of trouble.

"Call in Shisui." The Third Hokage spoke for the first time, giving Fugaku a stern glance. He didn't like how this trial was going any more than the clan chief did, but he hoped Fugaku didn't do anything stupid. The man tended to have a temper.

Fugaku stood up and opened the door. "Shisui, enter." He held the door as Shisui walked in then glanced once at Sana's worried face and closed the door.

"Shisui, as a shinobi of the village hidden in the Leaves you are required to tell this hearing the truth." The judge spoke calmly. "Now, have you at any time used Genjutsu on your teammates?"

"Yes, in training." Shisui answered in a calm voice, but his insides were tying themselves into knots.

"Training?"

"Yes… to… teach them how to break out of a Genjutsu illusion. They asked me to. Sana and Chikato did." He wondered what this had to do with Aki.

"Have you used Genjutsu on Aki?"

"No."

"But if your clan chief told you to you would."

"Yes."

"So your loyalty to Uchiha comes before your loyalty to Konoha."

"Yes." Shisui wondered why they were asking such obvious questions.

"So you are not loyal to Konoha?"

"The last time I looked Uchiha were part of Konoha. Has something changed in the last hour?" Shisui was starting to get pissed off.

"Shisui you are out of line."

"What is the purpose of this line of questioning?" Shisui's response startled the two elders, who did not expect such a direct statement from the young ninja.

"Such a direct young man. You are no doubt very skilled at Genjutsu. Hokage, I recommend this boy be removed from his duties until an investigation is performed to determine how he was able to use Genjutsu to force Aki to kill all those innocent targets." Kaharu's words cut through Shisui's heart like a knife and he stared straight ahead in shock.

"Shisui! I am speaking to you!" The judged banged his hand on the table and the boy jumped. "Finally, I have your attention. Why did you refuse to burn Yota's body?"

Shisui felt ill and was wishing he would pass out so he wouldn't have to answer any more questions, but his body wasn't cooperating. If only he had a cold instead of Itachi.

"Answer the question!" The judge banged his hand on the table again.

"The curse mark fried his eyes and his brain. The Kekkei Genkai secrets are protected at that point. He was my friend. I couldn't do it." Shisui hoped that worked. He really wished he could look over at Fugaku for guidance, but he didn't want anyone to think he needed guidance. He was supposed to be a ninja and that meant he had to stand on his own two feet.

Aki yelled at him, "Then why did Itachi return later to finish the job!"

Shisui continue to look straight ahead. He didn't acknowledge Aki's outburst. The Third restated the question and asked Shisui to answer.

Shisui thought for a moment. "What does any of this have to do with the murder charges? I believe that if you are accusing me of a crime I must first be charged, then I am allowed to have a lawyer present while I am being questioned. As none of those events have occurred I refuse to answer any further questions."

Danzou spoke in a calculating voice. "Very good, Shisui. You are, in every way, shape and form a true Uchiha. I would expect nothing less of you. Your Honor, it appears very evident to me that Aki has been under the influence of his student's Genjutsu abilities. What remains is to determine if Shisui acted on his own or under orders of…" he paused and looked at Fugaku and smiled "someone else."

The judge looked at Fugaku. "All charges are dropped. Return the accused to the prison and have him released. Lord Hokage, Shisui is to be removed from duty at once and a full investigation of his misuse of Genjutsu is to be conducted."

Shisui felt like a rug had been pulled out from under him. What had just happened? How could the charges have been dropped without even an investigation? And now he was the accused? How?

"Lord Hokage." Fugaku's voice had a deadly edge to it. "I have an alternative proposal."

"Let's hear it then, Lord Fugaku." The Third was not happy. His voice had an equally deadly edge to it, though who he was mad at wasn't as clear.

"At my discretion, as chief of the Uchiha clan, I hereby remove Shisui from the shinobi ranks of Konoha. From here on out he will be solely under me and work as a policeman and conduct missions solely for the Uchiha." Fugaku had worded it as a proposal but his tone of voice left no question that his words were now law.

The Hokage smiled. "I believe that is our only option at the moment. I also believe it will, unfortunately, take me a few hours to process the release papers for Aki. You will forgive me, but I should have it ready by morning." He stood up and left.

Shisui looked at Fugaku then moved over to stand next to him. The judge ended the hearing and he, Danzou and the elders left.

"Shisui, come to my house in thirty minutes and we'll talk." Fugaku grabbed Aki by the back of his shirt and shoved him forward.

"Remove the handcuffs." Aki ordered.

Fugaku smirked. "I lost the key."

"You also lost the case." Aki laughed.

Fugaku shoved him up against the wall. "You will _not_ give me anymore trouble. _Do you understand_?"

"Fine…fine…" Aki said in a bored voice.

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The meeting in the clan chief's house was attended by Fugaku, Toshiro, the clan elders, Itachi (in a robe and holding a box of tissues) and Shisui. Fugaku wasted no time getting down to business and quickly related the events of the hearing. When he got to the part where he had pulled Shisui out of the ninja corp Itachi reacted by having a coughing fit. Shisui reacted by wiping tears from his eyes, hoping that everyone was too distracted by Itachi to notice. Mikoto ran into the room with a glass of water for her son, then left again.

Once everyone had had settled down Shisui was informed of his new duties and told not to worry about the Konoha elders pressing charges and reminded him that the Hokage would not have Aki's release order until the next morning.

Toshiro then remarked that the suicide rate in the prisons in Fire Country was dropping but that sometimes prisoners had trouble living with themselves after committing certain crimes. Everyone agreed.

Shisui dropped to his knees and pressed his forehead to the floor. "I accept my new duties and will serve you and the clan to the utmost of my abilities. Thank-you for all you have done for me."

Fugaku frowned. "I am sorry it had to turn out this way, Shisui, but you are a very gifted ninja. The clan benefits from your skills. We have enemies in this village who would like to see us disappear. Unfortunately they won this round, but I assure you it was only a partial victory for them. You, Shisui, are now completely in my control. The Hokage no longer controls your fate."

Glancing at his son, Fugaku wondered how long it would be before they went after Itachi. He had put them off the trail for at least a year. Maybe longer if he was lucky.

"The meeting is adjourned. I'm going to go have a talk with Aki now." Fugaku waited until everyone had left the room then called Mikoto into the room.

"Itachi's cough does not sound good. Are you sure he has a cold? It sounds more like bronchitis or pnemonia." He asked quietly, trying not to sound too mad in front of Mikoto.

"Dr. Yakushi took chest x-rays and said he was fine. He gave me some medication for him and said he should be over it in a couple days." Mikoto smiled and tried to reassure her husband, but she was starting to feel a little tired as well.

"I received a message this morning and I need to leave the village in a few days. I was planning on taking Toshiro, Shisui and Itachi with me. The two children will make the mission must easier to accomplish."

"We'll have to wait two or three days to know for sure, but Itachi is a healthy child. He should be okay. What is the mission?" Mikoto was surprised by her husbands haste and a little nervous that he would rush Itachi's recovery.

"Remember Ouya Uchiha?"

"Yes, he was the man executed a few years back for passing information to the Stone village."

"He reported to us several years earlier that his wife Sadae and their baby had both died in childbirth. However, I received a letter from a hospital in Grass country. They have been treating an eighteen year old boy for an unknown lung ailment. A visiting medic recognized his eyes as Uchiha. The boy has the sharingan. He also has three younger sisters. However, their mother did apparently die a couple years ago, the letter didn't say how. The four children have been on their own with no knowledge of their heritage. Since children tend to trust other children before they trust adults it makes sense to bring Itachi and Shisui. Also, the boy needs to be brought to Dr. Yakushi, which is why Toshiro and I are going. We will probably have to carry him back."

"So there are four Uchiha children?" Mikoto's voice was hopeful.

"We only confirmed one. I hope the other's are, but we won't know for sure until we get there. In the meantime, if you and Kisa can arrange for their care when they arrive it would make things easier. The three girls are fifteen, twelve and nine but I still want them placed with a married couple so they can learn the ways of our clan and be supervised."

"Yes, of course." Mikoto smiled as she watched Fugaku leave the house. This was great news. "And one of the girls is Itachi's age. I wonder what she's like?"

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Next week – Shisui and Aki meet again, and the four Uchiha leave for grass country to retrieve the wayward children.

I just got a cold so I thought… hey, why not make Itachi and Sasuke catch cold too! You know the only way to get rid of a cold is to give it to someone else. I feel much better now XD

Happy now? XD I plot-no-jutsu'd some girls into the story. More explanation about why no one knew about them next week. Hopefully it's semi-believable.

What a surprise about Madara and Kisame in 404! OMG! I had to read that first page like ten times before it sank in. Madara is soooo cool! So is Kisame for that matter. Okay, they all are, XD

Please review! Please! It'll be fun! XD


	33. Chapter 33 Shisui's Dilemma

Last week Shisui's sensei Aki was arrested for assassinating targets that weren't in the bingo book. However Aki accused Shisui of using Genjutsu to make him kill the targets and the judge dropped the charges. Aki was returned to the jail to await a release order.

Thanks for all the reviews and fav's! They are so great XD

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto.

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Chapter 33 – Shisui's Dilemma

Fugaku lifted the man up off the floor and shoved him into the wall of the jail cell. "I am enjoying this Aki, so the longer it takes you to talk, the happier I get."

Aki had refused to answer any of the police chief's questions and was now sporting several cuts, abrasions, bruises and was bleeding. Seven other Uchiha policemen were standing outside of the cell watching, amused looks on their faces. Toshiro was one of them and was almost cheerful. However, they needed to get information out of the man and Shisui still had some unfinished business with his "sensei".

The other prisoners had also gotten their turn with Aki. In a village of ninja the student-sensei bond was almost sacred and even hardened criminals seemed to respect it. Of course, a couple of them didn't care, they just wanted to punch someone, anyone, for some fun.

"Aki, it is obvious you have been abandoned by your superiors. The Hokage has stated he has 'other things to do' instead of signing your release, leaving you in my 'care' until tomorrow morning. If you wish to make it until then, tell me everything you know about Danzou." Fugaku sat down on the edge of the cot and watched as Aki slid down the wall.

"What you are doing is illegal, you know." Aki's voice wavered and he had to force the words out through his swollen, bruised face.

Fugaku didn't answer. His sharingan eyes stared into Aki's with intense hatred.

"I… was supposed to recruit Shisui. He's a genius and Danzou wanted him for Root. It's an ANBU offshoot Danzou started up himself. I don't know what Danzou's goals are. I swear."

"Then why did you join?"

"I want Konoha to change. The existence of the Uchiha is a threat to Danzou. The way you are treating me proves it!" Aki yelled.

"Hn." Fugaku was a little displeased that Aki didn't know much. He was just an idealistic underling. Probably recruited for the sole reason that Shisui was on his team.

Aki continued to talk. "We arranged for a patrol of Cloud ninja to attempt to kidnap Shisui. It was a test to show his loyalty to Konoha, to defend his team. He failed. He defended his team, but his first loyalty remained with his clan and not his village. Danzou was very disappointed. Itachi, on the other hand. He is loyal to the village and in spite of several mental problems has a good heart. Something I'm sure he did not inherit from you!"

Fugaku walked over and hit the man upside the head, knocking him out. "You know nothing. Itachi is loyal to me and me alone."

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After Shisui got home he shut himself in his room, locked the door and cried for an hour. At least. He wasn't sure. He felt like his heart was broken. How could his sensei, a man he saw as a surrogate father, a man he trusted with his life, betray him? His frustration slowly drained out of him as his tears washed down over his face.

He realized, eventually, he wasn't alone. His mother hovered outside the door. She didn't disturb him, she just stood there. Waiting. Finally he pulled himself together and wiped his face off and sat down against the wall next to the closed door. He felt like he was too old to run to his mother's arms, but perhaps it was okay to sit next to her if the wall was between them. He heard her slide down the wall to sit behind him and he managed a small smile.

He didn't need Aki. He had his mother and father and Itachi and Sasuke and Fugaku and Mikoto… he continued to name the people in the clan he saw everyday as well as the people he had met at the Uchiha hideout. He could remember all their names and faces as well as their voices. They were the most important people in his life and would never betray him. Ever.

Madara was also important to him, he realized. The power the man offered would guarantee he would be able to protect his clan. He wished he had the Mangekyou Sharingan now. The Tsukiyomi he would use on Aki would last a week. He entertained himself with visions of torture until he eventually slid all the way to floor, asleep.

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Shisui woke up slowly, a little disoriented from sleeping on the floor. He glanced at the digital display on his clock and saw it was very early in the morning. Standing up he turned on the light and saw a plate with rice balls and glass of water sitting on his desk. Smiling at his mother's thoughtfulness he ate as he considered his next action.

The prison would be guarded solely by Uchiha at the moment, he was sure of it. He should have no trouble walking in. He wouldn't have to sneak around or anything.

Finishing up his meal he prepared a poison mixture. One that would cause intense pain, but disintegrate in the system making it impossible to detect during an autopsy. He coated a senbon then carefully stored it in a holder attached to his thigh.

Shisui was vaguely aware of his father sitting on the couch as walked through the house to the front door. Toshiro watched as his son left the house, his lips curled into a smile.

Entering the police station he walked past the reception desk without looking at the duty guard and walked with determined steps to the locked door that led to the prison cells in the basement. He used a transportation jutsu to appear on the other side of the door. Shisui sighed and looked at the guard leaning against the far wall.

"What are you doing here, kid?" The man, an Uchiha man in his late thirties named Yotsua was smiling.

"Where is Aki?" The words came out in a hiss.

"Isolation cell 32. It's two more levels below this one. Follow me, I'll show you the door to the stairwell – it's a clan secret so don't tell anyone about it." The man led Shisui down a hall that had cells on either side. At the end of the hall they walked through another door and closed it. Performing a series of hand signs the wall glowed for a second then a door appeared. Shisui reached over and pulled it open.

"The door is also protected on other side. I'll wait for you and show you how to exit."

Shisui walked down the stairs and noticed that they bypassed the second floor of the sub-basement, going directly to the secret third floor. When he reached the isolation cells he saw that they were protected with ordinary bars instead of the steel doors and walls he saw in movies. As he walked down the long hallway he saw no other prisoners in the area and judging by the dust it looked like it wasn't used very often.

The boy reached cell 32 and stepped back in shock. He cursed loudly and kicked the steel bars. Yotsua came running down the hallway at breakneck speed, skidding to a stop he also stared in shock and started cursing. Reaching for a radio he had in his pocket he called the duty guard.

"We have an escape! Aki Najima is not in his cell, alert the captain." He reached over and put his hand on Shisui's shoulder. "Come on. We have to go upstairs."

Shisui backed away from the man's grip and shook his head. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Quick acting like a little kid and get upstairs! You work here now, remember?"

Shisui looked at him in shock, then looked down at the floor. "I apologize. I'll go."

Shisui sat at his father's desk as he waited for Fugaku to arrive. The large room had several desks used by the senior police. During the day it was a noisy place full of men and women processing paperwork, talking to criminals and citizens, or researching cases. Right now, though, it was quiet. Almost relaxing. Shisui closed his eyes for a second then stood up and shook his head.

"Falling asleep on the job already, Shisui?" Fugaku smirked.

"No sir! I'm awake!" Shisui answered as he watched Fugaku, Toshiro and several other Uchiha police walked into the room.

Fugaku leaned against the desk next to where Shisui was standing and looked at the boy. His hair was messed up and his eyes were swollen and red. Obviously he had been crying at some point, for a long time if his eyes were that bad. This was not a good sign.

"You four, go downstairs and see if there is any damage or other clues to how he escaped." Toshiro, Shisui, come with me." Fugaku led them into his office and closed the door. He looked back at Shisui.

"It is unexpected. Shisui, you still have a strong emotional attachment to Aki, in spite of what he did to you. As your sensei he would have been like a father to you, however he is not your father and the events of a few hours ago should have broken any bonds you had with him. They didn't, though. Do you know what would have happened if you would have killed him?"

Toshiro gasped in shock and grabbed his son's arm, pulling him closer he lifted the boy's face roughly, his fingers digging into the boy's face, and looked into his eyes. Shisui reacted to the sudden contact by activating his sharingan. His father's brows creased as he saw the boy's eyes now had the full three tomoe and he looked over at Fugaku.

Fugaku walked over and looked. "You are forbidden from _ever_ coming into contact with Aki again. Absolutely under no circumstances are you to kill him." The next words came out in a menacing hiss that froze Shisui's heart, "_Is that understood._"

"Yes my Lord." Shisui spoke with difficulty as his father was still holding his face with one hand and his arm with the other.

"If you disobey Lord Fugaku you had better hope he gets a hold of you before I do because _I will not hold back_!" Toshiro yelled at his son. "I would no longer consider you my son at that point. Remember that!"

Shisui had never been so scared in his life as he was when he looked into his father's angry face. He had been scared many times on missions, and being trapped in the Tsukiyomi had frightened him as well, but nothing compared to the anger and hatred he could see and feel his father directing straight at him. He knew Toshiro loved him, but in order to kill him he would have to hate him or else…

"Yes Lord Toshiro." Shisui used his father's title to acknowledge his acceptance of his words and show obedient subservience as a son.

"When are we leaving?" Toshiro referred to the mission to retrieve the missing children.

"In two days. What do you want to with him?" Fugaku was all business as he looked sternly down at the boy.

"Lock him up in the secret level until then. The boy can be willful and right now I am too pissed off to deal with him. This was too close of a call. We were wrong to keep the Mangekyou sharingan information from the children. He could have activated it purely by accident and I would have had to…" He balled his hands into fists and closed his eyes tightly. "Damn that Danzou! This is all his fault!"

Fugaku watched as Shisui was led away by his father. He had no doubt Toshiro would have killed the boy if he had obtained the Mangekyou sharingan by killing Aki. Most of the clan was like that. They had such distaste for the old ways, the times of Madara when friend would kill friend to obtain the advanced sharingan that they would do _anything_ to prevent it from happening again. Fugaku did not want that to happen, but Toshiro's hatred of the advanced technique was absolute and he knew he could not stop the man if he got a hold of Shisui first.

Yet Toshiro was right, keeping it a secret from the boys had been a wrong decision. However, Toshiro didn't know about Madara and Fugaku was sure that the boy's knew all about the Mangekyou sharingan by now. But for some reason Shisui hadn't considered it when he came here tonight. That much was obvious. He had been driven by betrayal and hurt, not the hatred Fugaku anticipated. He had saved Aki's death for Shisui out of kindness, allowing the boy his revenge.

The problem was, now that Shisui knew would he go through with it anyway? Fugaku couldn't even guess. The boy was willful to an extent, but he was a loyal son to his parents and the clan. The Mangekyou sharingan was important to Fugaku's plans but not in the hands of child. And certainly not in Shisui. If anyone got it, it would be his own son. Itachi. And it would be used to kill Madara. But there was only one person Itachi had ever formed an attachment with and if that "attachment" did something now to get himself killed Fugaku's plans would be ruined. If Shisui did get the Mangekyou sharingan first then Itachi would never be able to defeat him to gain the technique himself.

The answer sounded simple, but would be difficult to put into action. He would have to find a way to get Shisui to hate Aki. It might be months or even years before they could get close to Aki again. If Shisui hated his ex-sensei then they would not have to worry about the two of them meeting again. Well, he had two or three weeks to consider it.

Fugaku walked out of his office just as the four men he sent down to look at the cell returned. Just as he expected they reported that nothing was out of the ordinary. Toshiro walked in a minute later, still angry. The four men looked at him curiously. They had seen him literally throw his son into one of the cells and were wondering what was going on.

"Obviously Danzou had the man sprung. Getting to him now will be difficult. However, Aki must die. And quickly." His stern expression looked over the five men in front of him. "Priority is given to finding Aki. We will decide at that point what to do. Under no circumstances is Shisui to be allowed near that man. He came here to kill him, but he still has an attachment to his sensei. You know what that means. If you see Shisui near Aki you are to disable the boy first, even if it puts him in the hospital."

"Understood, captain." All the men answered, full understanding crossed their faces at they looked over at their cousin.

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Kisa had been told what had happened and had packed up several items for her son. She also spent an hour with him trying to make him feel better, but Shisui was feeling depressed and betrayed. His father didn't trust him to follow his order to stay away from Aki. It hurt more than Aki's betrayal. He had never disobeyed his parents. True to the strict upbringing put on him by his parents and the clan it never occurred to him. And now he was feeling like it hadn't been enough.

Shisui paced a lot. He also meditated and did some Tai Jutsu exercises. He was very bored. There wasn't even a window since the cell was underground and the overhead light was never turned off making it difficult to tell what time of day it was. Luckily he had a watch.

At the end of the second day Toshiro finally came down into the secret level and told his son to pack up, he was going home. Shisui shoved his stuff into his backpack then stood quietly looking at the floor as his father looked down at him.

"Shisui, the Mangekyou sharingan can give you an almost unlimited power. The techniques can bind an enemy and control demons. However, you must understand one thing, the reason why it is hated and no long used by our clan." Toshiro spoke quietly and was a little relieved when Shisui looked up at him to listen instead of continuing to stare at the ground.

"Friendships were fostered among children training to be ninja. When training completed they would be paired off and made to fight each other to the death. A winner and a looser. One family celebrated publicly and one family mourned secretly. The child who won… the Mangekyou sharingan was his reward, and so was loss, guilt, loneliness and eventually blindness. The more it is used the quicker the eyes degenerate. The story is that the Founder, Madara, was blinded in his teens and then his younger brother gave him his eyes so he could see again."

Shisui's eyes opened wide in shock. "What happened to the brother?"

"He died. He killed himself so his brother could have his eyes. The clan never accepted the sacrifice and that was the first wedge driven between them. Shisui, you have to understand, our clan came to Konoha for peace. To end the ceaseless wars and the traditions that killed our children. If the power is revived and the person reviving it decides to put it back into practice then children will die again. Everything we hoped for when we helped found Konoha will fall apart."

Toshiro then did something that he hadn't done since Shisui was four or five. He pulled the boy into a hug and kissed the top of his head. "This isn't about you, son. You have to understand. We have a terrible power waiting to awaken in us and we have to keep it asleep. If you would have awakened it and I killed you, know that I would immediately kill myself. We have to keep the clan safe. It's our duty as members. Do you understand?" He released his son and looked back down at him.

Shisui nodded his head. "I understand. I understand father, and you are right. I wish I had known all that before. I wasn't thinking when I came down here anyway. I'm sorry."

The two walked back up the stairs and went home. Shisui was no longer mad at his father. He was, however, feeling anxious. Why was Madara so insistent that he at Itachi gain the Mangekyou? Why did he say there was a way to get it without killing?

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That evening Shisui stood next to the lake and removed his bracelet. He looked at it for several minutes. He had been betraying his father every time he had met with Madara. He had betrayed the clan. He felt foolish and gullible to have believed otherwise.

Shisui suddenly tensed up as he felt a familiar chakra behind him in the shadows. He turned around and looked at the swirled mask of the oldest Uchiha.

"My father told me everything. I no longer desire the advanced sharingan. I will no longer follow your teachings." His voice was quiet, so he wouldn't be overheard, but it was defiant and full of resolve.

"And what of Itachi? If he does not share your views?" The man's deep voice was cold. He was not surprised the boy would finally come to this decision. However, it was disappointing. He had hoped to have both Uchiha boys under his control.

"He is my best friend. Nothing could ever change that. I will not betray him."

"Fugaku knows you and Itachi are my students. Do you not think he has plans for you two as well?" Madara was smirking under his mask as Shisui's face registered shock.

"What? What is he planning?" Shisui felt his chest tighten. The man was right. Fugaku wasn't letting them continue to train out the goodness in his heart, or from fear that Madara would snatch them if he refused. He had to have had _something_ in mind.

"My death." Madara laughed. "Oh, he doesn't know I've figured it out, but his plan won't work. Itachi will not kill me. Nor will you or Sasuke for that matter."

Shisui suddenly felt helpless, like a little kid lost in a strange forest. He looked back down at the bracelet, not knowing what to do next.

"Throw it away if you wish. I have taught you enough to make you the most powerful ninja in the clan. I do not lie, your potential is greater than Itachi's, although he is close behind you. You will be able to serve the clan in a capacity they have not seen for two generations. The Hokage will be kicking himself now that he has lost you.

"I still have Itachi as my student – I will never let him go and anyone who stands in the way will be killed. You will protect your clan through your diligence and your silence. Is that understood?" He stepped forward and put his hand out. Shisui placed the bracelet in his ex-sensei's hand and looked at it for few seconds until Madara closed fingers around it.

Shisui felt a little sad. "Loosing two sensei's in as many days. Must be a record."

Madara looked down at the boy, a little confused. "I have high expectations for you, boy. I always have and I still do. When you walk through a door it is a good idea to leave it open an inch instead of closing it completely. Remember that." He looked into the trees next to the lake, then disappeared. "Farewell, Shisui."

Shisui thought about what Madara said for the next three hours. What stood out the most was that Fugaku wanted to use Itachi to kill Madara. He realized that meant Itachi would have to get the Mangekyou sharingan, and he could only get it by killing his best friend. Sighing, Shisui looked up at the sky. The plan would fail. Madara was right, Itachi, even with advanced abilities would never be powerful enough to defeat him. The man who had led so many of his students to their deaths in the name of power deserved to die himself. The question was, how did Itachi feel about it? Did he even know yet? He would have to find a way to tell him, perhaps after their mission ended.

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Madara watched Shisui as he stood next to the lake. He was not happy about loosing the boy. The children's trip through Water country had been a disaster and it still weighed heavily on their minds. He had created the mission and sent it off to the Hokage to get Itachi and Shisui out of the village for a while and allow them to participate in some real combat. However it had backfired.

The two teams had wandered into a spent battlefield, causing Itachi to suffer emotional trauma, which in turn gave Aki Najima an opening into the boy's fragile mind. That in turn caused Shisui, who was already suspicious of Aki, to become even more suspicious. Then there was the death of Yota. It had forced Itachi into a fit of vengeance, and afterward sorrow and disobedience.

Madara wondered if the trip had been a mistake on his part. Perhaps he shouldn't have sent the request. He had no interest in the safety of that pathetic village and two of the seven swordsmen had been laid up there for almost two months bored out of their skulls. Kisame did his job and observed Itachi and Shisui, reporting back to the Mist Kage how impressed he was with the boy's skill. That man did have a way with kids. He would make a great sensei, but Madara had other uses for him.

Smiling he sat down on the ground. Fugaku would be leaving tomorrow and Mikoto would be waiting.

"Fugaku, your clan is weak, your children pathetic and you women lonely. What can we do to fix that?" Madara spoke into the woods behind him.

"I don't really think any of that is your business." Fugaku stepped forward to view the masked man.

Madara ignored him. "Warfare will strengthen the body and sharpen the mind, constant training – my training – will save the children, and as for the women… Humph. Perhaps I should lend you some videos so you can see how to handle a woman. I'll give you hint… it's not the same as handling a slut."

"Bad mood tonight?" Fugaku smirked. "Frankly I am not interested in war, I refuse your training methods and Mikoto will accept however I feel like taking her, without complaint. Or I will find myself a different wife. If you want her so much, take her and leave. You have a home, I believe."

"So cold. The elders are pushing you. Both the clan and the village. How long can you hold out?" Madara stood up, then folded his arms and leaned back against a tree, resting the back of his head against the rough wood.

"Good question. But why does that interest you? Why do you keep coming back here? Is it the boys, or something else? And don't tell me it's Mikoto. We both know you have no interest in her outside of sex." Fugaku frowned. They were inside the clan compound in the woods by the lake and it was a very easy spot to be found if someone looked.

"For your information Shisui informed me that he will no longer be my student. You should be proud of yourself. I am down to one now."

"Then perhaps I can whittle that down to zero."

Madara laughed. "Over your dead body. Itachi is a prize I will not return. Mikoto… I _have_ considered taking her away, but I know she would never leave her children. Also, and this will come as a shock to you, she loves you Fugaku. She misses you when you are gone, when I make her moan and cry out in pleasure she wishes it was you making her feel that way, and when she wakes up to an empty pillow she wishes you were there to look back at her. She would never agree to leave with me." He paused to look at the clan leader's shocked expression. After a couple minutes, when Fugaku didn't answer Madara ground the statement in further. "What does it feel like to know someone loves you that much? Yet you refuse to allow yourself to love them back in return?"

Fugaku was mad now. "Then why do you keep coming back to her if you know all this?"

"I am taking advantage of her, true, but I am also consoling a lonely, beautiful woman. I do feel something for her, it is not love but she does hold a spot in my heart. Perhaps I should kidnap her for a vacation to a beach resort." Madara spoke wistfully, as if he was considering a few resorts already.

"There are some good ones in Water country no doubt." Fugaku was seething now.

"Ah! So you _have_ guessed. I had wondered."

"Are there any other Uchiha there?" Fugaku was working hard to bring his temper back under control.

"Hmm… I haven't looked lately. Maybe, maybe not. By the way, I checked out those children you will be collecting tomorrow. The boy is half dead, worthless, but the girls should make good mates for Itachi, Shisui and there is an older girl for one of the others. Ha! That little one will give Itachi a run for his money though, she's pretty wild and she has the sharingan already. I'll tell you what, if I find any other strays I'll send them to you." Madara straightened up and moved away from the tree he had been leaning on.

"Have you seen more?"

"No." He disappeared, leaving Fugaku alone in the woods.

"Damnit!" Fugaku cursed. He wished Madara was dead. He hated having to talk to him to seek out bits and pieces of information. But he had no choice. He had a feeling Madara was up to something and whatever it was would have a drastic effect on the village and the clan.

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Two days of traveling brought the Uchiha's into the capital city of Grass country. The garbage strewn streets and yellow air made travel through the streets difficult. Not to mention the large number of refugees who had turned entire streets into tent cities. Fugaku told them the city was divided up between various organized crime syndicates and there was no real industry. Meaning almost everyone was unemployed unless they worked for one of the syndicates.

Itachi watched as dirty children his age ran around the camps playing and laughing, while others sat leaning against building quiet and half asleep. He guessed they were sick by the listless way they watched the others. It reminded him of Water country, and the small child who looked like Sasuke sitting next to his drugged out mother.

The foursome made their way to the hospital where the missing children were staying, deciding to find the hotel later. The large building was gray concrete with several red crosses drawn on it, almost as if they wanted to make sure everyone knew it was a hospital no matter how blind they were.

"I had the boy moved to a private room and the girls have been staying there on cots." Toshiro explained as they walked through the building. "It seemed best to keep them all together."

"Here it is!" Shisui waved Itachi over and the two of them entered the room first. Four set of eyes turned to look at them, full of distrust and apprehension.

"Good evening." Itachi spoke in a clear, polite voice. "We are from the Uchiha clan. I am Itachi, this is my father Lord Fugaku, and this is Shisui and his father Lord Toshiro." He had been told to handle the introductions to help put the children at ease. It looked like it worked a little bit, they seemed to relax some, but not much.

A teenage girl stood up and bowed formally. "My name is Nui, Fumitake is in the bed there, and this is Aya and Sheeta." She put her hands on two girl's shoulders and they shook her off. The boy was an older teenager who was currently hooked to several machines that beeped regularly.

"The receptionist said the doctor would arrive momentarily." Fugaku spoke quietly. "What are your ages?"

Sheeta stepped forward and looked at Itachi. She was a couple inches taller than him, but had the same black eyes and hair. "I'm nine and Nui is fifteen and Fumitake is eighteen and Aya is a jerk so you don't want to know what her age is!"

"I'm twelve and I'm not a jerk you are!" Aya tried to step forward but Nui stopped her and moved to stand between the two girls.

"Sorry about this. I think cabin fever is setting in, we've been stuck here for a couple weeks now. Or more. Maybe three?" Nui shook her head to clear it. "Anyway, they usually don't fight."

"Yes we do." Aya and Sheeta said at the same time.

"Quiet! You'll disturb Fumitake. You know how hard it is to get him to relax." Nui's words instantly quieted the two girls down as they looked guiltily at their brother. His was watching the scene with a look of worry plastered on his face.

Fugaku sighed then walked over to the boy, putting a hand on his forehead. "You look so much like Ouya it's… You are his son. No doubt about it. So what happened? We were told you and Sadae died in childbirth."

The boy's voice was slightly hoarse and he spoke quietly, as if he was struggling for air. "Mother said that father was afraid she would leave him. He was a very bitter, controlling man. She was afraid that if she went home he would follow her and kill us so she wouldn't even tell us where she and father were born. We left… I guess Sheeta was three. He followed but Mother and I always fought him off. He couldn't go up against me and finally left us alone when I almost killed him. Humph. Now I can't even walk across the room."

Fugaku frowned. So the family had split up a mere few months before the clan had caught up to Ouya. "So why didn't Sadae return home after Ouya died?"

"We didn't know he was dead until that guy recognized me as his son last month. Mother died… she died two years ago without knowing about father. We traveled a lot, mercenary work." Fumitake put his head back on his pillow and breathed deeply several times.

The door opened and two doctors walked quickly into the room. Fugaku and Toshiro joined them and the four men spoke in low, serious voices. They exchanged x-rays and documents and Fugaku pulled out a box and handed it to the doctor. Finally one of the doctors walked over to Fumitake.

"Lord Fugaku has given us some information about the Uchiha clan. We will review it overnight and compare it to your case. I'll be back in the morning, okay Fumitake?" He patted the boy's hand.

"Yes." Once the doctors had left with their newly acquired reading material Fumitake returned his attention to Fugaku. "What do I have?"

"You are very direct." Fugaku frowned. Everyone was looking at him, except for Toshiro who was looking at the floor, a sad expression on his face.

"Listen. All of you. This is something we do not usually discuss outside of the clan as it would expose a weakness. Actually, it is something that links all Kekkei Genkai together."

"What a Kekkei Genkai?" Sheeta interrupted.

Itachi answered. "It is an inherited trait passed down through a clan. Ours is the Sharingan. The red eyes."

"So it's called 'Sharingan'." Nui said quietly.

"Do you have it?" Toshiro questioned Nui.

"Yes. All of us. Sheeta's only showed up last month when Fumitake had to be hospitalized." Nui's voice was sad.

Fugaku continued. "The various clans have a genetic illness that every member carries, but few get." The clan lord was trying to think of a simple way to explain the condition and paused for a couple minutes before continuing, catching his son's eye momentarily. "It has an array of symptoms including a weak heart and weakened immune system which is why Fumitake is having trouble getting over his bronchitis. As the condition progresses various organs, starved of oxygen by a weakened heart start to die."

"So… how long have I got then?" Fumitake asked belligerently.

"Depends on the damage. We are taking you to Konoha. We have a hospital there that is set up to deal with the Kekkei Genkai of our clan and they can treat you, as they have treated others. You won't be a ninja, but there are other things you can do."

"Yeah. Like what. All I ever wanted to be was a ninja." Fumitake's words dripped with sarcasm, making Fugaku bristle.

However, it was Itachi who answered. "If you're going to be like that then you are useless and definitely better off dead. We will just take the girls and leave you here." He was upset at hearing about the clan's weakness, but Itachi was never one to give up. "But you know, we're not letting you get off that easy. If father says you're of use to us then you better believe he'll have you working until you breathe your last breath."

Sheeta looked at Itachi, then back at her brother. "Yeah! What he said! Now get off your lazy ass so we can head out!"

Fumitake had to smile despite his bad mood. "I apologize for my outburst. I have protected my sisters and mother for so long that it is hard to accept my current weakness. But you…" He reached out his hand, beckoning for Itachi to come closer. "You will make a fine protector for Sheeta, won't you?"

Shisui was standing behind Itachi with a shocked look on his face, as was Aya and Nui. Fugaku and Toshiro were standing with their eyes shut, waiting for Itachi to walk into Fumitake's trap.

Itachi looked at a confused Sheeta. "Of course I would protect her. She is Uchiha. But I will also train her so she can protect herself. A woman must be strong, that's what my mother says."

Sheeta's eyes got big. "Really? You will train me? I want to be like your mother then! Did you hear that Nui! I'm going to be a ninja! I mean, kunoichi!"

Toshiro bent down close to Fumitake. "Smooth. And for your next trick Mr. Matchmaker?"

Fumitake smirked as he saw Fugaku cover his face and shake his head. "Guess…"

Shisui was also smirking now that he had gotten over his initial shock. Itachi was so clueless about ordinary human behavior sometimes. He obviously didn't realize that offering to protect a woman was very nearly a marriage proposal. In fact, it was so close to one that men often used the phrase instead of a proposal. 'Ah Itachi… your days as a bachelor are over.' He said to himself. Good thing he was only nine, any older and he'd be in a lot of trouble right now.

Of course, if Shisui had bothered to look behind him he would have seen Aya giving him a sly smile. She didn't need Fumitake to pair her up with anyone. She was perfectly capable of getting what she wanted on her own.

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Well, there wasn't much Itachi in that chapter, but I had to draw out Shisui and put him closer to the clan while Itachi remains employed by the village. I hope the sudden appearance of the children is believable. I tried to make it sound like their father was trying to keep his family isolated and completely under his control. Luckily I had that miscellaneous fodder ninja killed at the beginning of the story and he was a perfect candidate for a missing family. I also introduced the possibility of more Uchiha's coming out of the woodwork via Madara's cryptic comments about "strays". So… do you like Sheeta?

Please Review!

Next week, everyone returns to Konoha and Itachi gets news about the next Chuunin exams.


	34. Chapter 34 Turning Point

Thanks for all the reviews and fav's!

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto.

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Chapter 34 – Turning Point

"If mother finds out what you're up to you're dead. You know that, right?" Shisui frowned as he looked up at his father. They had finally checked into the hotel and Itachi, Shisui, Fugaku and Toshiro were currently in the room the boys were going to share. It was a large, five star hotel and the room was huge with two king size beds, a big screen TV, a huge bathroom and a wonderful view of a polluted city.

"She's not going to find out, though, is she?" Toshiro said conspiratorially. "Not unless you want her to find out what's hidden under your mattress back home?" Toshiro and Fugaku had informed the boys that they were going out for a few hours that evening and Itachi and Shisui were to stay in their room and out of trouble. Shisui had quickly perceived where they were going and was not happy.

"How…how did you…That's not mine! It's Chikato's! He left it in my room and I haven't returned it to him yet!" Shisui yelled, his face turning red in embarrassment. "I'm not interested in that stuff yet anyway! I'm too young!"

"And Kisa is going to believe that? You're a teenage boy, my son, and every middle-age father knows that the best magazines are to be found under the mattresses of their son's beds." Toshiro was laying it on thick. He actually did believe his son, but he was having too much fun teasing him to admit it.

"I'm eleven! I have two more years until I'm thirteen." Shisui sighed. He knew his father was teasing him, but he couldn't help but feel it was in bad taste. "Fine. I won't say anything. I wouldn't anyway. She'd kill me too for not stopping you. Besides, I'm not a tattle-tale."

"Ha! Good boy." Toshiro laughed, patting his son roughly on the back.

"Where are you going?" Itachi asked curiously.

Fugaku smirked. "I'll tell you when you're forty."

Itachi frowned. "You're not forty yet, how come you know?"

"Maybe you should wait until he's eighty." Shisui muttered, also frowning.

Fugaku gave a short laugh. Considering what was going on between Mikoto and Madara as well as his own frequent trips to brothels he was amused that Itachi hadn't figured any of that out yet. He wondered what would happen when he did, but then again, he didn't really care.

"We'll see you at 7am for breakfast in that restaurant we passed on the second floor." Fugaku said as he and Toshiro left the room.

As soon as they left Itachi was on Shisui about what was going on, but the older boy was still embarrassed and refused to say anything. Instead he ordered some snacks and a couple ninja movies from room service then settled down on the couch lost in his own thoughts. Itachi gave up and joined him.

"We should order some more of these cookies and take them to the girls tomorrow." Itachi said, nibbling on a chocolate chip. For some reason Shisui broke out in a fit of laughter.

"Is everyone going insane?" Itachi mumbled to himself.

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The unconscious woman moved her arm across her lover's chest, draping her hand over the shoulder opposite the one she was resting her head on. Madara tightened his grip on her with one arm while he caressed her back with the other. He was a little concerned. Mikoto had never fallen asleep around him before; she was too careful for that.

But then again, he had never stayed this long either. He usually left after a couple hours, at the most. Madara glanced at the clock and saw that it was 4am. He had been with her for six hours.

He had told Fugaku that Mikoto held a special place in his heart. That was true, but there was more to it than that.

Mikoto was the mother of his son. His other son's had died in childhood decades ago. He still remembered holding his oldest in his arms as he took his last breath, then laying him in the coffin while his body was still warm. They had known the boy would die when he became ill and being practical the preparations had already been made. The boy's mother had been so distraught she refused to ever come near Madara again.

And now there was Sasuke. And Mikoto. Yet he could not acknowledge the boy and he was not married to the woman. They both belonged to another man. They were living a life that was just a shadow of what the clan used to be, of what it should be. They were the descendants of his followers who had deserted him to follow the Senju into domesticated bliss. He still felt bitterness over that. No, it wasn't bitterness. It was hatred. But he didn't feel that when he looked at Mikoto or Sasuke. Even Itachi and Shisui he would tolerate.

The woman stirred and opened her eyes. Madara glanced at the clock again. It was now after 6am. He had spent the entire evening, yet lost in his thoughts it felt like he had only been there a couple hours.

The look of happiness that crossed over Mikoto's face lasted only a few seconds before she quickly disguised it. Madara smiled at her. "You have never woken up this way before, I can see it in your eyes." He tilted her head up and kissed her gently on the lips. She returned the kiss and as it deepened he turned her on her back so he was hovering over her, looking into her eyes.

"I have to leave now, but… you asked me about Danzou." Madara spoke softly.

"Yes, do what do you know about him?" Mikoto smiled sleepily.

Madara gulped once. Mikoto was incredibly beautiful in the morning. How the hell did Fugaku walk away from this every day? She was the perfect seductress.

"Danzou hates Uchiha with a passion. He will stop at nothing to see the clan dead."

"Why?" Mikoto reached up and ran her fingers through his hair.

"Doesn't matter why. He is blaming Fugaku for the Kyuubi attack and has introduced a measure into the council to have all Uchiha pulled back into Konoha and confined to the compound. They will then be put under twenty-four hour watch by ANBU."

"But… but we have an agreement with the Daimyou to provide him with security in the capital. Are you saying Danzou's reach stretches that far?" Mikoto moved her hands to grasp Madara's strong shoulders. She was wide awake now. Fugaku had spent over a month in negotiations to provide the clansmen, but, could it have all been a ruse?

"Danzou is… his reach is long indeed. You saw what he did to Shisui. Even Sarutobi won't touch him." Madara held Mikoto's gaze as he spoke and saw her expression turn to one of frustration.

"I wish he were dead. But if he dies they will know we did it, even if he died of natural causes we would still be blamed." She dropped her arms to bed and closed her eyes.

Madara looked at her for another minute then got out of bed, pulling the blanket down as he got up. He stood looking at her body as she lay still, thinking over what he had just told her. He started walking toward the bathroom to take a shower when she spoke again.

"Why did you stay?" Her voice was sad, or perhaps wistful.

He stopped, his back to her and looked up at the ceiling. "You needed me to." He walked into the bathroom and closed the door.

Mikoto frowned. It had been a wonderful feeling to wake up in his arms, but she had a feeling that was not why he had stayed. Or perhaps it wasn't the entire reason. She smiled and sat up. It appeared that Madara needed her for more than just a bit of fun. Fugaku had been right.

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Fugaku had spent about four hours in the company of a couple women, or "sluts" as Madara had put it. He smirked, but the smile died quickly. The man had told him that Mikoto loved him. Perhaps she did, Fugaku couldn't tell. He had to admit to himself, he knew nothing about love. But that was the way he wanted it.

As clan chief one of the first lessons he had learned, and learned quick, was that attachments made his job more difficult. The first execution he had to perform was while he was still a child. Kentaro had been there as an advisor and had helped with the verdict, but it was Fugaku who had been forced to perform the deed. He had cried all night, even though he had never met the man he had killed before and had no personal attachment to him. He realized sometime around dawn that the only way he would be able to continue was if he distanced himself from his cousins. So far that had worked.

But now, Mikoto, Itachi and Sasuke were invading his perfectly honed walls. Mikoto was… she was kind and always there for him and the children. She was beautiful and strong and an amazing kunoichi. Despite Madara's teasing he was never rough when he made love to her. He never treated her like he did the prostitutes. She was his wife and he did have some respect for her. But he needed to keep his walls up. He could not, would not love her.

Fugaku exited the elevator and made his way down the hall. It was around 2am he figured. He hadn't looked at his watch. He sensed the boy's chakra – they were asleep. Toshiro wasn't back yet. Well, that was to be expected. The man liked to find his women at night clubs so he probably wouldn't be back until an hour or two before breakfast.

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The trip back to Konoha took a full week. For one thing, they had to rent a small horse cart to transport Fumitake. They had stayed in the Grass country capital for two weeks and the boy had improved with the medicine Dr. Yakushi had provided, but he was still weak and had trouble walking far. He walked occasionally, but could only go for about twenty minutes before he had to rest.

Fugaku watched the boy and was trying to gauge his abilities. He was about five foot ten inches and well-toned. He obviously had been powerful when he was well, but now… Fugaku had already decided to employ Fumitake in the police force, but he was uncertain which job he would specifically give him. It would have to be a desk job, but he knew the boy would not enjoy that.

Nui spent all her time watching over Fumitake and the girls and she quickly adopted the boys as well. She was very maternal for a fifteen-year-old, but then she had been watching over them for the past two years since their mother had died. Fugaku didn't know for sure, but he guessed it was probably a normal behavior for an oldest daughter.

Sparring with Nui, Fugaku and Toshiro noticed that she had a rather unique fighting style. One that was taught to her no doubt by her mother. She had been sparring with Toshiro and he had quickly gained the upper hand, having a couple decades more experience than the girl. She ducked under one of his kicks and rolled onto the ground, momentarily lifting her shirt up to flash a hint of breast. Toshiro had been shocked and she took advantage of his distraction to find an opening, quickly jumping up and kicking him across the clearing. He had landed on his butt, very embarrassed. He had also told her never to do that again while sparring. It wasn't lady-like and should be saved for an actual fight.

Fugaku had to agree, but he was trying, unsuccessfully, not to laugh at his cousin. Nui just smirked at them and said that if it worked who cared when she did it.

Fugaku had sparred with her next and noticed that she had amazing chakra control. She was able to concentrate one attack using a finger. Fugaku now had a small bruise a half inch in diameter where she had touched him. He decided that she would be recommended for the medical corp. Her caring nature and chakra control might make her a good candidate for a medic.

Aya and Sheeta were very alike. Almost like twins. They stuck together and didn't like to be out of each other's site. Fugaku suspected some sort of traumatic event had caused their dependence but he figured it would drop once they were in a stable home. Other than that, they both were average for their age group when it came to Taijutsu and were just learning to use the fighting style with their sharingan eyes. They were excited about learning more ninja skills from Itachi and Shisui and plied them daily with dozens of questions.

The two young girls did have one bad habit. They fought with each other. All day. They argued over stupid things, like what shape a cloud was or how many rocks were in a stream. And neither was willing to give in. However, they weren't disobedient. Fugaku found the situation curious. If they two girls were arguing and Nui or Fumitake told them to stop, they did. Instantly. It was, really, the last thing he expected. It was almost like they were arguing instead of having a conversation.

Fugaku decided to keep the two girls inside the clan as well. Given what was going on with Danzou, putting them in the Academy might cause problems. This way they would be nurtured by their foster family and he could use them on missions when he wanted to. They would also be shielded from outside influences that could prolong or even worsen their current trauma.

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Arriving in the village Fumitake insisted on walking, not wanting the people in his new home to think he was weak. The girls were quiet, looking at everything with wide eyes. There was no garbage on the ground or hungry children begging in the streets. Everything looked well-kept and the air was clean. All four children were suddenly shy and self-conscious. They were wearing brand new clothes purchased in a town the previous day and had received a lecture from Fugaku on behaving themselves in front of the villagers.

When they approached the Uchiha compound they were greeted by a clansman who was leaning against the front gate. "Rihito and Emi are ready for the children." He smiled as he greeted the children. "Emi is your mother's younger sister. Sadae left the village with Ouya when Emi was still a child so she doesn't remember much about her. But she is looking forward to meeting you all."

Fugaku had some private words with the lazy-looking man and then everyone entered the compound.

"Why was he standing guard?" Fumitake asked.

Fugaku was a little taken aback. "So you noticed. Things aren't as ideal as they appear on the surface. None of you are in any danger, but under the surface things are starting to simmer. That's all I'm going to say for now."

Fumitake frowned. "I will take your word for that. More because of my weakened condition than because I believe you. But if my sisters are in danger when you say they are not, I will come after you if I survive defending them."

"And I would deserve it." Fugaku said plainly. It was Fumitake's turn to be taken aback. "It is my job to lead the clan. If I fail my death is to be expected. However, if I did fail there would be more people than you coming after me so if you did die defending your sisters know that my death is not far behind."

"Thank-you my Lord. For everything." Fumitake smiled in gratitude.

Itachi felt his father's hand rest on the top of his head and he looked up, meeting his eyes for few seconds. He realized he was being told that the words weren't meant to console Fumitake but a statement of truth. And that truth funneled down to Itachi as well. He nodded his head once in understanding and Fugaku removed his hand.

The children's new home was on a side street at the opposite end of the compound from where Itachi and Shisui lived. The house had a ten foot stone wall with a large wooden gate in front of it. Fugaku rang the bell attached to the gate and Emi ran out of the house with an eager smile. She was about three or four inches taller than Nui and looked enough like her to leave no doubt in anyone's minds that they were related.

"You're here! Oh I'm so glad!" She pulled everyone into the neatly manicured front yard and into the house. After introductions she showed everyone the house, it was actually quite large. Emi explained that her parents had built it themselves and when they died her oldest brother and his wife had inherited it, but didn't want it so she took it. And a good thing, too, with all the kids she now had to house.

While the house wasn't as big as Itachi's it was twice as big as Shisui's. Rihito and Emi had moved the rooms around, combining some and moving the dining room into the large living room so that each child had their own bedroom. Aya and Sheeta were a little nervous about it, but decided that if they didn't have to hear each other snore then it was definitely a step up in the world. Itachi and Shisui laughed at them. They had camped out a couple nights during their journey to Konoha and neither girl had snored.

Fumitake was pleased with the arrangement, especially having a ground floor room away from the girls. "However," he spoke seriously to Itachi, "I don't want to hear about you climbing in through Sheeta's bedroom window to visit her at 2am." He winked at Rihito and Emi to let them know he was joking.

Itachi's eyes opened wide and Sheeta looked up the stairs, her room was on the second floor. "I would never do that! It would be breaking and entering!" The boy was serious and Fumitake somehow managed to keep a straight face, even though everyone else was laughing.

Itachi looked at Sheeta and saw that she was just as confused as he was.

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"Fugaku, you got the message I sent you about Danzou." Mikoto was finally alone with her husband in his meeting room. It was almost midnight and the boys were finally asleep. Sasuke had been so excited to see his big brother and the new children that he had been bouncing off the walls for hours.

"It was unwelcome news, but to be expected. Now that I am back I expect I will hear from the Hokage soon." His tone was business-like. "You did well Mikoto."

She looked down at the floor. "He stayed all night. I think you were right… he feels something for me. Although he tried to turn it around to make it out to be me that needed him."

Sighing, Fugaku moved off of his mat and stood up. He took her hand and pulled her up into an embrace. "He can make you feel things I cannot. I cannot feel love so I cannot return your feelings. Mikoto, I am sorry. It would have been better if you hadn't fallen in love with me. Perhaps we should have split up back then."

Mikoto buried her face in his chest. "No. I'm right where I want to be. I made that decision years ago. Madara… he needs me… for something. I'm not sure what's going on."

Fugaku rested his check on the top of Mikoto's head, tightening his embrace. "I'm not sure either. He is a complicated man. But as long as he comes to your bed when I am gone and you can get information from him perhaps we can un-complicate things. He is up to something and the more we know the easier it will be to kill him later on."

"What about Itachi?" Mikoto asked softly.

"He knows nothing. Madara is keeping him out of the loop right now. That much I know for sure. I don't know how long things will remain like this, especially since Shisui has refused his continued tutelage. I must keep watch over my son to ensure he remains loyal to me."

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Three days later Itachi stood in formation with his team and the rest of the Konoha Genin in the small parade ground on the roof of the Hokage's tower. Several of the Genin's parents, including Fugaku, as well as other citizens, stood off to the side.

The Third Hokage stood in front of everyone on a raised platform. He had called all the Genin together to make an announcement. Looking over the young shinobi standing in front of him he was filled with happiness and pride over what they had become and the promise of what they would be. He could look through the formations and pick out certain faces of those who would no doubt move to the top of the ranks. But he had lived long enough to know that even the lowliest student could surprise him. He never made the mistake of underestimating his Genin.

"Attention!" He spoke loudly, pulling everyone's gaze to him. "As per the treaties signed between us and several neighboring nations the Chuunin exams are being modified. Because of this there will be no exam this year. No doubt most of you already figured that out since it is November already and the year ends soon.

"The next exam will be in May. As it will be the first exam in the new format it will be a showcase of Konoha talent, an opportunity to show the other nations our top skills. As such the teams that will participate will be hand-picked. After that the Chuunin exams will be held every year in June and November and any team that has met a specific set of criteria may participate.

"The first exam in May, as I said, will have hand-picked teams. I have rearranged a few teams to provide a more equitable distribution of talent. The new teams are being posted on the wall in front of you.

"I will also say that no one is being excluded because of name, clan affiliation or rank within a clan. No one!" His voice became stern and he turned his gaze over to where the adults – mostly parents – were standing, picking out Fugaku Uchiha and Hiashi Hyuuga he hoped he got his point across.

He continued, his voice still stern, "For the next few months your teams will be ranked on ability and in April the chosen teams will be announced. You will not be allowed to change teams so you will work with your comrades. The exact format of the exam will consist of three separate tests. You must pass the preceding test in order to move to the next. The exact nature of the test will be explained to the candidates during the first test. That is all I have to say about it right now. You are dismissed." He turned around and walked back into the building.

Itachi felt Yuri grab his sleeve and pull him over to where the team announcements were posted. Sana was already there and waved them over.

"Look! I'm on your team now." She smiled at them. Itachi and Yuri breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"Good. We have an amazing team then!" Yuri smiled. "We're a shoe-in for the exams!"

"And Yurina is still our sensei!" Itachi said smiling. He was used to working with her and liked the way she organized missions and trained.

"To bad about Shisui though. He really wanted to participate." Sana's words were tinged with regret. "And Yota."

"Let's go buy an offering for him and visit the memorial. We can tell him about it." Yuri said quietly.

Itachi looked at the older girls and frowned. He remembered his conversation with Kakashi a few weeks ago. He had told Itachi that he went there everyday to talk to Obito. Is this why he did it? To tell him what was going on? But he couldn't hear him, could he? Itachi looked through the crowd and saw Kakashi talking with Fugaku. It was a strange coincidence.

"Are you coming, Itachi?" Yuri asked, waving a hand in front of his face. "You look like you were spacing out on us."

"Oh. Sorry. Yes I'll come." He hoped the news wouldn't make Yota sad.

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The Uchiha elders met that evening to discuss several issues. Itachi could see that tempers were flaring and everyone was in a bad mood. He tried to catch Shisui's gaze to see if he knew what was going on but the older boy was also on edge.

Itachi had spent the entire day training with Yuri and Sana and hadn't come back until Sheeta and Aya had shown up to tell him his father wanted him for something. The two young girls had stayed behind to train with his teammates while he ran back to the compound.

Fugaku held the meeting in the secret room under the temple. Only about a quarter of the torches were lit so the room was still partially dark. When he walked to the dais at the front of the room he moved his cushion and sat on the edge with his feet flat on the floor below. His expression was serious and his chakra, dark.

Looking over the assembled elders and members of the main branch Itachi couldn't help but feel that something very bad had happened. Immediately on guard the boy disguised his feelings behind a blank face and sat as still as possible.

"Itachi!" The first word out of his father's mouth was a shout that made the boy cringe inwardly. "The Chuunin exams are going to be a showcase to demonstrate Konoha in front of several other countries. You will participate and you _will_ come out as the number one entrant _and_ a Chuunin. Failure will be severely, _repeat_ severely punished!" The next words were yelled in anger, "Is that understood!"

"Yes Lord Fugaku!" Itachi's answer was tinged with surprise. He hadn't expected his father to threaten him. He wondered briefly what the punishment would be and immediately decided he didn't want to know. They had threatened him when he had taken the Genin exam, but not like this.

"You will then be in a position to be considered for ANBU. That is your goal." He paused and looked at the clansmen assembled. "Itachi is to be put to use as an ANBU. He will be our eyes and ears to the village. This time next year Itachi will be an ANBU operative." He pounded his fist down on the dais and yelled again, "NO EXCUSES!"

Itachi looked at his father. Something was going on. "Yes My Lord. I will attain the position. But… if I may ask… what has lead to this decision?" He kept his face passive hoping the question didn't set his father off.

"You have not heard yet." One of the elders spoke angrily.

Fugaku closed his eyes. He had barely been able to control his temper when the Hokage had spoken to him after the Genin meeting. And now, several hours later, it was proving to be just as difficult. "The Konoha elder council has decided that the Uchiha clan needs to be kept under surveillance. They believe we are plotting against Konoha."

Itachi gasped in shock. How could they think such a thing?

Fugaku continued, "They have ordered all Uchiha to live only in the clan compound. That pertains to our cousins living in other neighborhoods of the village and the capital. The Daimyou has agreed with the Konoha elders and cancelled our defense contract. The Uchiha from the capital will be arriving here within the week."

"But… why?" Itachi was beyond shock and the words slipped out before he thought about them. His spirits had been lifted earlier with the news about the Chuunin exams, but now they were crushed again with this new revelation.

"Danzou. He hates us. He hates us so much that he is willing to go to the ends of the earth to get rid of us. Itachi, that is why you are so important. That is why you will succeed." Fugaku gave his son a serious look. "You are no longer a child Itachi. In this world, in this time, you are our hope."

"Yes. I will do whatever you say." The boy looked his father in the eye, there had to be something else he wasn't telling him.

"Everyone, I have considered my next move closely for the past year. I have studied many different angles and many different outcomes. There is only one that makes sense, that will guarantee our survival." He paused for a minute, sending his chakra out to check the genjutsu that was hiding their meeting place, verifying it was still in tact. "We will assassinate the elders and the Hokage, placing ourselves in their positions."

There were several minutes of silence while everyone tried to digest the information. Itachi felt like his chest had just been crushed in a vice and he looked up at his father with a look of panic that he barely disguised.

"Itachi, you are key to this, but you are not alone. Your clan stands behind you and you will receive all the necessary training. As you are now, you would be unable to carry out your assigned duties. We have clansmen here with the skills you need. You will be taught by them. When you come out on top at the Chuunin exams ANBU will place you in their sights. The high profile missions you get from the Hokage and the clan will cement your entry.

"Make no mistake, this is a plan that will take three or four years to execute. Everyone's cooperation and silence is assumed."

"Lord Fugaku?" Itachi spoke in an even voice to hide his worry. "If they distrust us, then why would ANBU even consider me, no matter how good I am?"

Fugaku smirked. "Aki gave me a hint about that. He was ordered to try to recruit Shisui and you. Key to that recruitment was that you showed your loyalty to village instead of to your clan. Danzou doesn't understand that a clan can be loyal to both. So over the next year we will set up several situations in which you will choose the village over your clan."

Itachi nodded his head.

"Itachi. We must do this. If we fail… what will Danzou's ultimate goal be? We are being herded up into one spot, watched around the clock, then what? Will we loose the police station? Be confined? Will our clan be killed? They can't exile us because they can't risk our abilities being used by another village." Fugaku's voice was rising again as he described the different scenarios.

"Could… could we just leave?" One of the elders asked hesitantly.

"Do you want to leave?" Fugaku threw back at him.

"No." he sighed. "I want to stay here. I see your point. There will be a lot of planning to consider though. Not just the intended coup, but what is to happen the day after."

"Agreed. That is one reason we will not act right away. That is why Itachi's entrance into ANBU is so important."

Itachi looked down at the floor. He wasn't really sure what the implications of the intended assassinations would be. He had never studied such a thing. However, he didn't want to see his clan treated this way. They had been loyal to Konoha and even tried to protect it from the Kyuubi several years earlier. The entire clan had risked their lives that day. Was it all for nothing?

The villagers seemed to be distrustful of them. Some even accused them of causing the attack. Itachi had heard their mean words and read the hurtful graffiti that was still occasionally painted on the compound walls. And their exclusion from the last Chuunin exams was painful as well.

It sounded like this Danzou guy wanted to kill the clan. Itachi felt his stomach knotting at the thought. He was sure his father had a special, painful and prolonged death planned for that man. Itachi's stomach relaxed and he smiled as his fantasies ran wild with the elder's impending torture.

Fugaku saw the look on his son's face. It was a smile he had seen before, as the blood of his victims dripped off the boy's sword. 'There is no way this can fail with Itachi behind us.' Fugaku said to himself.

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"So Fugaku has finally made his decision. Is the boy up to the task he has been given?" The orange haired man looked over at Madara who was currently leaning back against a wall. They were both standing on the roof of a tall building in the Rain Village's capital.

"He will be. However… Should Fugaku succeed it could interfere with my plans. The nine-tails is still in Konoha and I doubt Fugaku would just hand the boy over. He may even decide to kill him, even if he was the Fourth's son, just to keep him away from me. Also, attacking a village under his rule would require a lot of resources."

"So should we kill him?" Pein leaned up against the wall opposite Madara and frowned.

Madara was silent for several minutes as he considered the implications of an assassination. He could do it, or have someone else do it, but… The clan would retaliate. Fugaku was well liked. They would probably assume the Hokage ordered the assassination. It would result in the coup taking place earlier than planned and with a different figurehead, but it would still happen. And it would probably succeed.

"Not yet." Madara sighed. "Let's wait and see what happens. Itachi is key to the operation. I might be able to manipulate him." Madara smirked, "I know I can manipulate him. I have the boy eating out of my hand right now. "

Pein shifted away from the wall and stood straight. "Then I guess everything is under control in Konoha."

Madara laughed. "As always."

Pein started to walk away, but Madara stopped him. "I don't want you to move against Hanzou yet."

"Why not? I am easily in a position to overthrow him and take over rule of Rain country."

"That is the problem. You are key to my plan and I don't want you out in the open yet. Continue the rebel attacks but keep them small."

"Humph. As you wish. I believe Konan has returned. I shall be otherwise occupied for the rest of the day. Do you need anything else?" He spoke as if challenging Madara to say something else.

Madara heard the challenge and laughed. "I understand your frustration, Pein, but I promise it will be worth it in the end. Have patience." He used a transportation jutsu to disappear. Pein gave a low growl deep in his throat then turned around and re-entered the building.

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This chapter was kind of all over the place, but it was tying up some loose ends and setting the stage for the last half of the story. There are still a lot of chapters to go, but we are closer to the ending now.

Next week: The Chuunin exams begin. Will Itachi's team be a part of them? (come on, at least pretend you don't know the answer XD)

Please Review!

Updates on Fridays.


	35. Chapter 35 Chuunin Exams Begin

Last week the missing Uchiha children were finally reunited with their clan, Itachi received word that the Chuunin exams would be held next year and he would not be excluded because of his clan, and finally Fugaku reveals his plan to aid his clan.

Thanks for the great reviews and all the favs!

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto. He even kept the receipt to prove it XD

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Chapter 35 – Chuunin Exams Begin

In one month the entrants for the Chuunin exams would be announced. Emotions were running high among the various Genin teams and already four teams had been disqualified. One had even been permanently disbanded when the members had ganged up and almost killed another Genin team. No one knew how many teams were going to be chosen.

Training was the only thing on Itachi's mind. In fact, when he got up and went to the kitchen for breakfast and was handed a wrapped package by his brother he had no idea what was going on.

"You have to open mine first, big brother!" Sasuke gave his brother a toothy grin.

Itachi didn't know what to think and looked over at his parents who were sitting at the table eating.

Mikoto shook her head, smiling. "Don't tell me you forgot your own birthday."

"Oh!" Itachi blinked in surprise.

"Do you remember how old you are, at least?" Fugaku smirked. He was pleased that the boy was more interested in training than personal matters.

"I…am ten." Itachi said hesitantly. He was a little disoriented.

"Open it! Open it!" Sasuke pulled on Itachi's arm as he jumped up and down next to him.

"Okay." He smiled and carefully pulled the paper off, keeping it in one piece.

"Do you like it?" The young boy was looking expectantly at Itachi.

"Yeah. A lot. Thank-you, Sasuke." He suspected his father had a hand in the choice of gifts. It was a book, recently released, on field applicable medical ninjutsu. It was just the right size to fit in a backpack and was more advanced than the one he currently used.

The other two presents from his parents consisted of a new backpack with several hidden pockets that could only be opened with a Jutsu and a book of advanced Shogi strategies. The last gift must have been from his mother. Mikoto was an expert Shogi player, as were many of the elders and Itachi had been playing them as part of his training.

"Sheeta also would like to see you today, Itachi. You are free for lunch so you may go to her house." Mikoto smiled pleasantly at her son. Itachi had been training the young girl when he found time and, true to her Uchiha heritage, was a fast learner.

"Thank-you. I will be there at noon." Itachi responded politely and sat down to eat.

After Itachi had left Fugaku turned to his wife, "Fumitake is being a little aggressive here. Has he spoken to you at all?"

"About what?" Mikoto was playing dumb, she didn't want to have this discussion with her husband.

"Hn." Fugaku frowned in displeasure. "He probably only has a year or so to live. He has been trying to pair his sisters off in arranged marriages before he dies. Toshiro and Kisa are meeting with him to arrange a betrothal between Shisui and Aya, I'm sure you've already heard about it."

Mikoto folded her hands in her lap and looked at the table. "Yes. Kisa is very happy. She is hoping they will marry when they are eighteen. But that is years from now and I don't like the idea of agreeing to something so far in advance. There is no way Shisui or Aya understand any of this right now. I don't care how mature either of them seem to be, they are still only twelve- and thirteen-years-old." 

"I have to agree with you. However, this is a personal issue between families. I will not intervene." Fugaku really was unhappy with the development. He had a use for Shisui and pairing him up with a girl would make it harder when the time came to enact his plan. Especially since he could not risk hurting the girl. There was a good chance she would be able to bear children and the clan needed children.

"What about Itachi? Fumitake is pushing Sheeta on him and the poor girl doesn't understand what is going on. Neither does Itachi." Mikoto had grown to admire the child. She was a hard worker who always tried hard to succeed in her studies, not to mention she had a rather unique personality that made people around her smile.

"It is a difficult decision. If Itachi…", he closed his eyes, a pained look coming over his face. He almost said "survives". "If Itachi marries it will most certainly be to Sheeta. Her mother had four surviving children, it is possible Sheeta has inherited her mother's child-bearing abilities. She is also strong and very loyal. A good match." Fugaku opened his eyes and saw a tear leak out of Mikoto's eye. She quickly wiped it away.

Fugaku was silent for several minutes as he thought about the implications of a betrothal. "We will agree to it. In deference to Fumitake we will agree to a betrothal between Itachi and Sheeta. If something… happens… to Itachi it will place Sheeta in my custody and I will find another husband for her. Probably Sasuke. This will also put forth a semblance of normalcy. The Konoha council would consider such an action to be expected of the clan's heir."

"But…" Mikoto started to argue.

"My decision is made Mikoto. Be assured, though, that I will not approve a marriage before they are eighteen."

Mikoto nodded her head in acceptance. She knew she had no say in the matter anyway. However, she felt very sad. The children wouldn't understand. Such a strong promise to marry at a date so far in the future. So many things could happen and if they fell in love with someone else or hated each other they would be unable to back out of the promise. While a lot of marriages in the Uchiha were arranged, very few were ever betrothals, and even fewer were planned so far out in the future.

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"Here, Itachi, I wrapped it myself." Sheeta handed her friend a small box wrapped in blue paper then nervously clasped her hands together. She had never bought anyone other than her brother and sisters a present before and wasn't sure what to do.

Itachi opened the package and smiled. It was a necklace. He lifted it out of the small box and held it up. For some reason he couldn't explain it pleased him that it wasn't a weapon or a book. The necklace itself was made of steel and consisted of a series of rings with an inch of metal chain connecting each ring to the next.

"Thank-you Sheeta." Itachi said quietly as he politely bowed to her.

"Oh! I'm so glad you like it! Let me put it on you." She carefully clasped the chain around the boy's throat. "See! Look in the mirror."

Itachi saw the necklace around this throat, but he also saw Sheeta standing behind him, her big smile reminded him of his little brother. It was happy and undisguised. "When is your birthday Sheeta?" He asked smiling. He was looking forward to buying her a present.

"July."

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The Uchiha compound had grown to admit all the clan members from the capital. It was still no where near capacity, with several buildings standing empty. The mood though was heavy. Many of the new residents had lived in the capital their entire lives and being uprooted and forced to leave the homes they had invested so much emotion and time in was traumatic.

Fugaku had told them they would not be returning and Toshiro and Kisa, who were in charge of housing arrangements, did their utmost to match people to housing equivalent to what they had left behind. In a couple cases they had even hired contractors to modify dwellings. Konoha did nothing to help, but no one expected them to.

Assigning duties to the new arrivals was also difficult in some cases. Fugaku responded to the challenge by firing most of the non-Uchiha policemen and replacing them with his cousins from the capital. It was more of a political move at that point. He had told the newly unemployed that if the Hokage hadn't ordered the Uchiha's from the capital to Konoha he wouldn't be obligated to find them jobs. The only reason non-Uchiha were even employed at the station was due to a shortage of Uchiha and now that the shortage was lessened there was no reason to keep them.

The ex-policemen were given a severance bonus of six months pay. That was also a political move. Even though he had laid them off he was now guaranteed their future loyalty. To cement the relationship he told them that anyone who did not have a job at the end of six months would receive a weekly check until they found one.

The Hokage had visited Fugaku after the lay-off to congratulate him on taking such good care of his people, both the Uchiha and non-Uchiha. Fugaku had responded with neutral comment and the conversation had ended quickly.

Itachi and Shisui were pleased about one thing, though. Rumiko, their friend from the Uchiha gathering five years ago was living down the street from them. She was twenty-years-old now and engaged to marry the same man Fugaku had seen her holding hands with all those years ago. She and her boyfriend were working as police and very busy, but she still had her outgoing, friendly personality and tried to visit with the two boys when time allowed. She was also helping Aya and Sheeta with their training which was one of the reasons she was so busy. The lessons were daily and lasted three hours, consisting of text book lessons and Taijutsu.

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The day after his birthday Itachi came home in the evening only to be ushered directly into the shower then dressed in a formal Yukata. Mikoto fussed over his hair and tied it at the base of his neck. She was also dressed nicely and when Fugaku made his appearance he was dressed in the same style Yukata as Itachi.

"Are we ready?" Fugaku said seriously.

Itachi looked up at his parents curiously. Fugaku was his usual stern self, but Mikoto was masking her chakra. Which probably meant she was upset about something. Sasuke was nowhere to be seen or heard.

Mikoto nodded once and pushed Itachi toward the meeting room. There was a table setup in the middle of the room that had three cushions set on one side and four cushions on the other and at the end one cushion. Itachi was guided to an end cushion on the three cushion side. Fugaku entered and sat next to Itachi while Mikoto continued to stand.

Voices could be heard from the front door and Mikoto went out to great them. A minute later she entered with Fumitake, Sheeta and their guardians Emi and Rihito. They were also dressed formally. Itachi noticed that Sheeta's kimono was a dark blue silk with several brightly colored koi woven into it. An elder, an old man in his sixties, was also with them.

The elder sat at the end of the table while Sheeta was told to sit across from Itachi, Fumitake next to her and their guardians took up the remaining cushions.

Itachi looked at Sheeta but looked down at the table, avoiding his gaze. He had no idea what was going on, but suspected his friend did. Fumitake was serious, his determined gaze locked on Itachi. For some reason it made Itachi nervous. He wanted to ask his father what was going on, but Fugaku had the same serious look on his face so Itachi kept quiet.

Mikoto poured everyone some tea and the elder put some papers on the table and cleared his throat.

"We are here this evening to sign the betrothal contract between Lord Itachi Uchiha and Sheeta Uchiha. I believe the terms have been discussed at great length and the guardians of both parties have agreed to them. Are there any further issues to discuss?" The man opened his calligraphy set and prepared a brush.

Itachi felt like his heart stopped and he gave Sheeta a panicked look. She had her eyes clenched shut. He wished he knew what she was thinking. Why didn't his parents tell him about this? What did it mean? He knew a betrothal was a promise to marry someone, but what happened between now and the wedding?

He steeled his nerve, "Father? I… what is going on?" Sheeta opened her eyes and looked at Itachi for the first time since entering the room.

"Exactly what the elder has spoken of already. Fumitake is seeing to the futures of his sisters before he leaves us and I am seeing to the future of my heir, and his heirs." He pushed the contract in front of Itachi.

The contract listed several issues and the boy quickly read through them. He read down the list seeing that payment would be required upon breach of contract, Fugaku would obtain custody of Sheeta should Itachi die before or after the wedding, no wedding would occur outside of extenuating circumstances before the age of eighteen and the wedding could not be postponed past the age of twenty-two, two children would be required to be conceived within five years of the marriage with more requested if the woman was capable of it. Divorce would not be allowed until after two children had been born and we over six years old.

There were a lot of other things listed but Itachi didn't read them. "I know… I know what it means if Sheeta marries me. I…" He glanced at his mother who diverted her gaze to look down at the table.

Mikoto felt like digging a hole and burying herself in it. She suddenly realized the guilt trip she had placed on her son. All those times she had argued with Fugaku, when she had left them, when Fugaku had hit her. It took a monumental effort to mask her chakra. Mikoto wanted to speak with her son, to reassure him somehow, but Fugaku had forbidden her from saying anything. However… She glanced at Fugaku, silently asked for permission to speak.

Fugaku saw his wife's plea and ignored it. "Itachi. The future of the clan is your only concern. Sheeta is a member of that clan. It is pretty much a given that, as the only girl your own age the two of you would eventually be in the position you are now. It is only happening now in deference to Fumitake. He wishes to see to the futures of the sisters he has helped to raise. It is an honorable request and one neither of us should ignore.

"You and Sheeta will not marry until you are at least eighteen so neither of your lives need change for many more years to come. We can speak of this more in a couple years when you are older. But for now, just accept it and carry on as usual."

Itachi felt a little better, although his nerves were still making his stomach summersault. "Yes father. I understand."

Fumitake smiled. "Thank-you, Lord Fugaku. It eases my heart to know my two youngest sisters have firm futures."

The contract was signed by Fugaku and Rihito. Sake cups were distributed, as it was traditional to drink at the signing of a contract. Itachi and Sheeta looked at the small amount of liquid in their cups. It was nothing more than a token amount, a few drops, but they both hesitated to drink it.

The elder laughed at them. "It won't kill you, drink up!" The two children tipped the cups to their lips, draining the liquid into their mouths. It tasted awful. And it burned. Coughing they looked up at the adults.

"That was horrid! How can you guys drink this stuff!" Sheeta said angrily.

"Yeah!" Itachi agreed.

Fugaku chuckled, as if he were laughing at a private joke only he knew. "Someday, you'll find out for yourself."

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Itachi and his teammates ran into the village at top speed. It was April and the teams had been chosen for Chuunin exams two days earlier. However, Team Yurina had been on a mission and were only just now returning. Skidding to a halt in front of the Hokage tower they walked in and made their way to the bulletin board. All three sighed in relief. Their team was one of five that had been selected.

"Ah! I thought I saw you three run up." The Hokage walked up to them, smiling.

The three children bowed politely and spoke, almost in unison, "Thank-you for selecting us, Lord Hokage."

Sarutobi laughed. "So polite, too." He paused and put his hands behind his back, looking down at the children he smiled. "You are my star team. Skill without arrogance is hard to find. Make it to the final round and the rewards will be great. Don't disappoint me."

"We won't!" Again they all spoke at the same time, then laughed.

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Itachi was walking outside of the village, making his way to the training ground he had been using for the last few weeks to practice. The first exam was coming up soon and he was utilizing every waking moment to hone his skills. However, that morning his father had told him to keep watch for an opportunity. Part of his father's plan to get him into ANBU was to set up situations that would allow Itachi to show his loyalty to Konoha over the clan. Something like that must be coming up today.

"I said where am I and how did I get here!" The loud male voice was coming from the trees up ahead. Itachi knew that there was a small clearing ahead that some of the Academy students had been using on the weekends.

A young boy's voice yelled back, obviously scared, "I don't know! Just let her go! Please! We had nothing to do with anything!" Screaming soon followed and Itachi broke into a run, hiding his chakra as he activated his Sharingan.

Reaching the small clearing Itachi saw that a man with a Cloud headband was holding a small girl, about six-years-old, while waving a kunai at two boys who were about the same age. Another girl, about Sasuke's age, was sitting on the ground and crying. He guessed she was probably the little sister of one of the children.

Itachi stepped forward and spoke in a loud, calm voice. "Release the girl."

"Humph. Another child. Are there no adults in this pathetic village?" The man tightened his grip on the girl.

"Know that if you refuse I will kill you." Itachi took another step forward.

"There is no way a pathetic shorty like you could ever harm me. I am in the Bingo books of seven nations. Now tell me how I got here!" He threw the girl to the ground and turned to face Itachi.

Itachi yelled, "Quick! Get out of here! Now!" The children scrambled to get away.

"We'll send help!" One of the boys yelled as he picked up the crying toddler. They all took off at a full run back toward the village.

"Will he be okay?" The other boy asked.

"That's Itachi Uchiha! He can take out ten of those guys without blinking…" The voice faded as they ran down the road.

"Humph. Itachi Uchiha. You were the one who killed those missing Cloud nin a couple years back. I'll have fun gutting you like a fish! One of those was my brother!" He was yelling by the time he finished his sentence.

Itachi looked at the man in front of him. He was sweating profusely and his face was red. He obviously had a high fever. His eyes were also dilated, causing him to squint even though they were shaded by the tall trees that surrounded the clearing. Using his Sharingan he could see that the man's chakra was irregular. It seemed to be pulsating.

"You are high on some kind of drug. That's why you don't remember getting here. How pathetic." Itachi spoke matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, so what. A man needs to forget sometimes. You'll learn that soon enough kid. 'Regret' is our middle name and 'power' is the façade we hide behind in order forget our regrets. You'll learn that kid, you'll learn that and then you'll think of me. Dream of me. Live a life like mine." Snarling he launched himself at Itachi, "Assuming you live long enough, that is."

Itachi pulled a kunai and dodged the charging man. He suddenly sensed the arrival of two ninja's who perched in the trees nearby. ANBU. Perfect.

Itachi dodged again as the man ran toward him, but he quickly disappeared. Itachi immediately did a transportation jutsu to the other side of the field, not knowing where the man was.

He dodged as the Cloud ninja appeared next to him. Falling to his side he swung his feet out in an attempt to trip the man but he had disappeared again. Itachi used the speed gained with his Sharingan to dodge the man as he once again appeared in front of him.

The Cloud ninja was fast and made good use of transportation jutsu's. This fight was going to take forever at this rate, and Itachi needed to end it quickly. For one thing he was supposed to be proving his loyalty to Konoha and for another thing he wanted to impress the watching ANBU.

As Itachi dodged the man once again he realized he was going to have to set a trap to catch him. He formed some seals and three clones, exact duplicates of the Cloud ninja he had killed ran into the clearing. The man was immediately distracted at the sight of his brother and ex-comrades.

Lifting his Kunai Itachi quickly ran over and slit the man's neck. He fell to the ground and immediately Itachi jumped back four feet and dodged a kunai aimed at his throat.

"You are very good. What is your name?" Itachi asked, dodging another kunai strike.

"Shigekazu. I expected you to drop your guard once you thought you caught me. Ha!" He paused and looked at the boy. He could also sense a couple other ninja's nearby. "It seems we have an audience."

"Hn." Itachi smirked. He then disappeared and sent a genjutsu at the man. It was a high level genjutsu he had been taught recently by his father. He had been having trouble with it, causing his father to yell at him in disappointment.

The difficult part of the genjutsu was that it also used a bit of medical jutsu. It created an illusion then the medical jutsu released chemicals in the victim's brain that cause fear. It was an "S" ranked jutsu, the highest level.

Shigekazu had spoken of regrets and Itachi decided to use that against him. Creating a genjutsu of various voices calling out to the Cloud ninja the man at first ignored it, but Itachi slowly made the voices louder. Sound was an effective weapon as well. When the man started to get agitated he sent a medical jutsu into the man's head and watched as the Shigekazu suddenly grabbed his head and screamed. Intense fear gripped him and he fell to the ground yelling at the voices to shut-up.

Itachi walked over to the prostrate man and watched him writhing on the ground in fear. He had actually done the jutsu correctly. He wondered if Shigekazu would be able to break the jutsu and considered waiting to see. However, he did have a job to do and he did have more training. Looking up at the sun he saw it was still a couple hours or so until noon. Sighing he pulled out his kunai and slit the man's throat. He watched the blood drip off the kunai for a couple minutes then removed the man's head and packaged it in a bag.

The ANBU left, but Itachi felt that there were other's in the area. One of whom was his father. He resisted the urge to smile, he knew Fugaku would be pleased that he had mastered the difficult jutsu. The other chakra he felt… Madara was nearby as well. He picked up the head and walked back to the village.

He was halfway there when three ninja's skidded to a halt in front of him.

"Are you okay?" One of them asked, "Some students said they were attacked and you needed backup."

Itachi held up the bagged head. "No. I'm fine." The "backup" laughed and walked with him back to the village.

When he entered the gate he saw Shisui standing near a couple other policemen who were questioning a man. The boy was obviously bored and passing time by throwing a kunai up in the air and catching it. Itachi waved to him, holding up the head.

"Wow! You got another one! Cool! Let's go take it to the station." Shisui was excited.

Itachi realized that Shisui was part of the con. "No. I'm taking it to the Hokage."

"But… when you catch someone outside of a mission you are supposed to turn him over to Captain Fugaku. You know that." Shisui frowned.

"I'm not a policeman, Shisui. _You know that_." Itachi was being sarcastic.

"You are an Uchiha. It has nothing to do with being a policeman. You are required to show your kills to the Captain." Shisui was now standing a couple feet away from his smaller cousin and Itachi was not backing down.

"I don't care. The man was a threat to Konoha and the Hokage needs to know. If you have a problem with that then it's a good thing you aren't working for him anymore." Itachi turned his back on Shisui and walked away.

"When you get your butt beat by your father tonight don't say I didn't warn you!" Shisui yelled back to him.

Itachi noticed about a dozen other ninja, including the two ANBU from earlier, nearby watching him. So far so good.

An hour later Itachi left the Hokage building with a fat check in his pocket and many words of praise. The Third himself had even come down to see what the boy had done. He was impressed that Itachi had brought the head himself instead of taking it to his father first. However, when he reached the Uchiha compound his father was leaning up against the gate pillar waiting for him.

"Where is the head, Itachi?" His angry voice made Itachi stop in his tracks. He could sense the ANBU were still following him.

Itachi sighed. This was getting tedious. He was now going to have to take a beating from his father. And it would hurt. "I took it to the Hokage."

Fugaku grabbed his son by the shirt and shoved him into the wall, lifting him up to eye level. "Protocol demands that any heads taken not in the line of duty be give to me!" He was almost hissing.

Itachi grabbed his father's hands and tried to pry them off of his shirt. "He was a threat to Konoha, not you!" Fugaku hit the boy across the face.

"I expect obedience from my heir. This will be a warning, but the next time you will receive punishment. Is that understood!" He threw the boy and Itachi landed about eight feet away on his side.

Itachi quickly moved onto his knees and bent his forehead down to the ground. "I apologize father. I understand." Fugaku walked past him back into the village and Itachi looked up at his father's back, giving him a very dirty look. He sat up and continued to frown. The two ANBU left, probably to follow Fugaku or return to the Hokage.

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That evening Itachi was called to his father's meeting room. It was around midnight and all the lights were off. Fugaku sat on a cushion at the front of the room and Itachi sat in front of him.

"I am very proud of you, Itachi. The show went off without a hitch. And I saw you use that genjutsu. Very good. A ten-year-old boy who can perform "S" ranked jutsus is a prize indeed."

"Did you know those students would be there? They could have been killed." Itachi had been wondering about that all day.

"No. The man was placed in a different field, but he woke up earlier than planned and wandered away. Itachi, when you were in the Academy what were you told to do if you were confronted by an enemy ninja?" Fugaku seemed to be a little pissed off.

"Run away and hide. Are you saying they attacked?" Itachi said, surprised.

"Yes they did. Luckily you showed up a minute later or the whole thing would have been ruined. We would have been forced to intervene to save them. I reported the matter to the headmaster and he gave them a stern lecture. I also understand the boy who is the toddler's brother is having a hard time sitting down tonight as well." He chuckled when he remembered the shocked parent's angry words.

"Next, is the first exam. I understand it will contain a trick question so be on guard. Tell your two teammates to also be on guard. Remember you are ninja and nothing is out of bounds. I do not know any more than that but as you three are the top Genin team in Konoha it should be easy for you. Itachi, the punishment will be commensurate with the costs of failure. I must tell you that everything I have done to you, all the injuries you have suffered will be nothing compared to what the council has planned. We are counting on you. Our survival depends on you. Don't make me do that to my son." Fugaku stood up and left the room.

Itachi sat in the room by himself. He sat alone until the early hours of the morning, meditating and thinking. He knew the plan was important for the clan's future but why did they keep threatening him? He had never disappointed his father or the elders. And he never would.

He had a sudden desire to see Sheeta but… He looked at his watch. 2am. Itachi smirked, remembering Fumitake's warning. "Why not?"

The boy made his way across the compound and jumped up on the small balcony outside of Sheeta's room. He looked in and saw her sleeping. Rapping on the window lightly he sent his chakra into the room. Sheeta stirred then looked at him. Smiling she got up and opened the door.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, laughing.

"Just wanted to see you." Itachi smiled.

"I hear you got a head today. I can hardly wait until I get my first head!" Sheeta was happy for her friend.

"It's scary, your first time."

"I've seen Fumitake and Nui and Mother kill before. It'll be okay." Sheeta was confident that was the truth.

"It's not the same, though. I can't explain it. You'll find out. But, when it's your life or theirs it makes a big difference." Itachi sat down on a chair.

"Fumitake told you not to come by at 2am." Sheeta smirked.

"Yeah. Where is he? I thought he would come up here and yell at me."

"Do you want to get yelled at?"

"I'm used to it."

Itachi stayed for an hour then left. He didn't realize that Fumitake was aware he was there, but hadn't said anything. He felt sorry for the boy, to tell the truth, and realized that he had very few people to talk to. He didn't like the pressure Fugaku was placing on Itachi and suspected the boy was having trouble dealing with it. Well, if it were him he would be having trouble. Itachi was a strange child, Fumitake had to admit.

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"The first exam will consist of a written test. You will be graded as a team so all your scores will be combined. Anyone who fails will cause their whole team to fail. Cheating is strictly forbidden. You will have two points taken from your total each time you are caught. If you are caught three times you and your team will be expelled. You will see that there are nine questions on the exam. The tenth question will be given to you after fifty minutes. Now begin!" The proctor was a man in his fifties who looked like he had been run through a meat grinder sometime in his past. He was full of scars and the left side of his face was completely indistinguishable. He had not even given them his name, saying that they wouldn't be around long enough to use it.

It was May and Genin teams from several different countries were gathered together in a room reading exam questions. Team members were separated from each other and Itachi looked around seeing Yuri in the back of the room in a corner and Sana five rows in front of him.

Itachi read the questions. They all contained advanced logic and many had trigonometry involved. He realized he would have no trouble answering them, but Yuri was not good at academics. Her uncle had made studying such things difficult as he focused her training solely on combat. Itachi had a short moment of panic when he realized she wouldn't be able to answer a single question. He didn't know anything about Sana's academic abilities. She was from Shisui's class, not his.

There was no alternative. They would have to cheat. Itachi didn't feel anything was wrong with that. They were ninja, after all, and cheating and stealth were a way of life. Actually, now that he thought about it, he figured that the test was probably about cheating without getting caught. Why else would they wait for you to get caught three times before kicking you out? Now all he had to do was think of a plan.

Itachi decided the first thing he should do is answer the questions on the test. He couldn't pass them on if he didn't have them, after all. As he finished he noticed a brown tendril peeking up over the edge of the desk. It was almost unnoticeable. Itachi smiled inwardly. Yuri was taken care of, she would be able to see the answers and was no doubt quickly copying them. That left Sana.

Sana could send her shadow to capture people, but she could not use it to see. Itachi activated his sharingan and saw that her paper was empty. He then had a thought. Could he cast a Genjutsu on her and make her see the answers? It was worth a try.

Folding his hands in a hand sign, Itachi concentrated his chakra then sent an image of his exam paper to Sana. Sana stiffened slightly, for about a second, then relaxed again. She picked up her pencil and started writing. It worked.

During the fifty minute exam about a third of the teams were expelled for cheating. Itachi, Sana and Yuri had helped some of them get caught by moving their papers around. One of the exam referees had even started to watch Itachi's paper because he was catching so many people copying off of it. He almost laughed at the blatant way the boy was baiting the other Genin. At the end of the fifty minutes there was no one left sitting around the boy. They had all been expelled.

"Stop writing!" The proctor yelled at them. "It is time for the last question." The students put down their pencils and some of them stretched, looking around nervously at the empty seats, and curiously at the lone boy sitting nonchalantly in the middle of them.

"The final question is an all or nothing situation. You can stay and answer the question, and if all three members of your team get it right you pass. If one of you gets it wrong your entire team fails and you will never be allowed to take the Chuunin exam ever again. However, if you leave you will fail the exam but you may return again the next time it is offered. As you can see the final question overrides the test you have just taken." He paused for a minute letting everyone think. "Now, everyone who wants to please leave."

Itachi watched as half the remaining teams left the room. Itachi was confident he could answer the question, whatever it was, and he knew they had a good method of cheating so Yuri and Sana should be okay.

"Is that it?" The man questioned the remaining teams. He smiled when no one else left. Of the Thirty-five teams that started only six were left. Itachi's team was the only Konoha team left.

The proctor stood straight and waved his arm across the room. "There is nothing left to say but, you all pass!" He laughed as eighteen Genins looked up at him in shock. "The final question was not an academic or practical question, but one of loyalty and teamwork. In staying you affirmed your abilities and placed your trust in your teammates. When you are on a mission you don't have the option to say 'I don't want to do this I'm going home'. You must persevere and follow through. You must do your best, even when you don't know what is going to happen in the next five minutes. You must work with your team to combine their skills with yours to succeed. Your life and those of your teammates and your village depends on it. Never forget that."

Everyone in the room sighed in relief and Itachi couldn't help but smile happily. Two more tests to go.

"The next test will begin tomorrow at 8am. The next proctor will meet you there. The map to Practice Area 44 is here." He pulled down a map from a roll attached to the blackboard. "This is where you will meet him. It will be a test of survival and endurance so pack as if you are going on a mission. It will last seven days without any outside interference. You are dismissed."

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"Two more tests to go, Father." Itachi reported back to Fugaku that evening at a secret meeting in the hidden chamber in the temple.

"Good. That is a relief. How many teams passed?"

"One Konoha, one Grass, one Stone, two Cloud and one Wind."

"Out of Thirty-five?" Fugaku was surprised.

"The written exam was a practical examination instead of academic based. It was a ruse." He went on to tell them about cheating, how he tricked those around him into getting caught and the tenth question. Everyone was amused and congratulated the boy on his cleverness.

"Tomorrow we begin a week long survival test in Practice Area 44." Itachi told the assembled clansmen.

"Then we will await your report. Do your best. You spent a lot of time studying survival so you should do well in this exam as well." Fugaku said. He was pleased with his son's report. "You have gained the interest of ANBU already, Itachi. Your name has come up in their secret list of possible recruits for the next six months. You will have people following you, watching your actions, setting you up to test your abilities. As of this moment you are our spy in Konoha. Do everything you can to get close to ANBU but do not forget where your loyalties lie. The clan is your lifeblood, your reason for existing and the people you are working to save."

After the meeting Fugaku had one more piece of advice for Itachi. He knelt down in front of the boy and whispered in his ear, "Do not let ANBU find out about Madara. If they even suspect he exists the order to kill us will be given and we will defend ourselves. Remember that. Tell him to stay away from the village. If he refuses… see if he will stay away at least until you are in ANBU."

Itachi nodded his head in understanding.

Nightmares haunted his sleep that night. He walked through the compound with a bloody sword watching his brother cry, then suddenly found himself trying to comfort Sasuke who was crying over the bodies of a boy and girl only to find he was a ghost and unable to touch anything. In the morning he awoke at 5am and realized that in one dream the Uchiha compound was abandoned and in the other Konoha was destroyed and full of corpses. But in both Sasuke was crying. In the first dream Sasuke was about seven or eight and in the second he was about sixteen. He suddenly felt that he had realized something massively important, but he still couldn't put his finger on it. And why did he have a bloody sword if there were no corpses? Is that why he kept asking where the ghosts were? A bloody sword that was never used to kill. Where did the blood come from?

"Itachi? I have breakfast made. Come get something to eat before you leave." Itachi broke out of his musings and smiled. Mikoto had gotten up early to cook for him.

Entering the kitchen Itachi was further surprised to see that Sheeta was also there. "I wanted to wish you luck. Rihito told me about the exam yesterday and it was great what you did." She was very happy, despite the time of day, and smiled.

Itachi sat down and saw Mikoto smiling at Sheeta. It was a good way to start the day. No sign of his father to preach fire and brimstone at him and his mother and friend fussing over him.

When he left at 7am Shisui was waiting at the compound gate to walk with him to the test location. He was feeling down about not getting to participate, but was still very happy that Itachi was. He made Itachi promise to remember everything that happened so he could tell him later. He then gave his cousin a good luck charm he picked up at the shrine. Itachi tucked it into his backpack and Shisui left to go to work.

It was finally time to begin the second exam and Itachi, Yuri and Sana were excited and eager to go. They had high hopes and as grim as the forest beyond the twenty foot fence looked they had no doubt they would succeed.

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Next week, the forest of death beckons and six teams enter it. How many will come out when one week is over?

I made the test similar to one in the manga, but I have Cloud and Stone participating. I figured they probably did show up for a year or two after the treaties were signed then stopped. Besides, I never understood why, if the Chuunin exams were supposed to be a replacement for war, the two main participants of the last great ninja war didn't participate. Really, it makes no sense to me. What threat is Waterfall, Grass, and the other small nations compared to Konoha? None, really. Wind participated and that does make sense. Mist would not participate so that also makes sense. It's just Cloud and Stone and that are blowing my mind.

Please review!

Updates on Fridays!


	36. Chapter 36 The Forest of Death

In the previous chapter Itachi was formally betrothed to Sheeta. He also fought and defeated a Cloud nin and triumphed in the first part of the Chuunin exams.

Question of the day: If Lee is unable to use chakra, how does he do the "walk on water" jutsu?

I'm pretty sure the evidence points to the second and third exams having existed since the end of the last war. The first test I'm a little suspicious about. I have a feeling Ibiki has been doing it for a while, but as to whether the test always existed as it is now – I have a suspicion it has changed over the years. Kabuto didn't say anything about it to the "9", but then there was no reason to. Also, none of the "9" specifically asked him. Kabuto is funny that way, if you don't ask him the right question you don't get the right answer (if you know what I mean). I wanted the first test in there though because I thought the idea of Itachi cheating on an exam, then getting the people sitting around him expelled was funny. Now the intermediary fights that took place in the Tower after the second exam were a technicality because too many people passed. However, if you ask me, there were still too many participants at the end. All those fights, if they took place would last days, in my opinion. But maybe that's why they have a festival going on at the same time – to distract people after the daily fights.

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto.

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Chapter 36 – The Forest of Death

The eighteen Genin stood around, waiting impatiently for the exam proctor to show up. The May morning was clear, but from what everyone could see of the forest they were about to enter, they wouldn't see much of the sky for a while. It was filled with massive trees and extremely thick foliage. What they could see through the trunks was nothing but blackness.

Yurina had met up with her team for a few minutes to wish them luck. She was off on her own mission, but promised she would be back in twenty-four hours, and definitely would be there to greet them in one week.

Itachi, Yuri and Sana passed the remaining time by going through each other's packs to verify they were well stocked. Of course they were. All three were experienced shinobi. Between then they had dried food, soldier pills, medical kits, weapons, weather gear, water purification tablets, matches (in case they couldn't use chakra and needed a fire), and scrolls.

The five other teams were also going over their supplies. Itachi noticed that one team from Stone had actually split their supply collection among the three members and were redistributing them amongst their packs. It was actually a good strategy. Since they were in a strange village they had split up to collect the items they needed to save time. Of course, it also worked in Itachi's favor because he now knew what they were carrying. He and his teammates had reviewed their items by looking into each others packs. Most of the other teams did it by emptying them on the ground. Bad strategy. Itachi smiled as he noticed a couple teams were not properly prepared. He pointed them out to Sana and Yuri and they laughed.

"Attention!" The loud voice reverberated over the area and some of the Genin jumped. A man in his early twenties appeared in a puff of smoke. He was medium height with black hair and extremely pale skin. Itachi figured he had either been very sick lately or he was a vampire. No one could be that pale naturally.

"Welcome to Practice Area 44. Better known as the 'Forest of Death'. It is a high level training ground that will be used as the second stage of the Chuunin exams. Your team will be given a scroll. There are two types of scrolls, a 'Heaven' scroll and an 'Earth' scroll. There are six teams so that mean three teams will have a 'Heaven' scroll and three teams will have an 'Earth' scroll. The object is for your team to get both scrolls." The man moved to a map that was painted on a wooden board attached to the fence. "You will make your way from your assigned gate to this tower in the center. Anyone who does not make it by noon on the seventh day is disqualified."

Everyone moved closer to look at the map. The entire area was only a few miles and could easily be navigated in one day. How could it possibly take them a week? Itachi was curious but decided not to say anything.

The man continued. "You will fill out these consent forms, stating that I'm not responsible for your deaths and take them over to that building. Your team will be given a scroll and a gate you will enter at. Make your way to that gate – you can see them on the map here – and at 10am you will be let into the forest and the exam will begin."

"So only three teams at the most can pass?" A boy from Cloud asked.

The exam proctor smiled. "Yes. This is a survival test, after all."

"What's the third exam?" Another Genin asked.

"You'll find out in one week." The proctor laughed. "Now fill these out and get going."

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Team Yurina stood motionless and silent at their assigned gate waiting for 10am. A Chuunin was standing next to the padlock on the gate staring at his watch. When the appointed hour finally came the gate was unlocked and the boy and two girls ran into the forest. They quickly found a secluded area and crouched together on the ground.

Itachi spoke up, "Yuri, what do you know about this place?"

"It's full of a large number of wildlife including tigers, lions, and giant leaches as well as exotic and deadly plants. We can't let our guard down for a minute. My uncle said he spends a lot of time in here studying some of the plants for the Hokage. The terrain is uneven with no real trails. There is one trail, though, but it is guarded by a jutsu. The instructors are no doubt using it to get to the tower." Yuri was very matter-of-fact as she spoke.

"We need to find another team." Sana said, smiling. "I think we should take them all out."

"No problem." Yuri laughed and sent her chakra into the ground, searching out roots and using them look for competitors.

Itachi smirked. "That would mean only we would be in the last exam. Perfect." He pulled out a scroll and copied the map that they had seen on fence earlier.

Yuri pulled the map closer and used pebbles to mark the current locations of the other five teams. The Training area was circular with a river cutting it in half and a tower located in the center. There were two teams on Team Yurina's side of the river and three teams on the other side.

"We have to get the teams before they enter the tower." Itachi stated.

"So should we go for this one first?" Sana pointed at the closest team. "Or this one?" She pointed to the second closest.

Itachi thought about it for a minute then spoke. "Actually, let's get the two teams to engage each other then take out the winner. The same thing for the other three teams. We can assess their fighting methods then use them against the winners. That will also help after the exams if we ever meet them in battle during a mission."

Yuri and Sana laughed, then Yuri shook her head and spoke in mock sorrow. "We're going to miss you Itachi."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Itachi was a little taken aback.

"You are _so_ going to be recruited into ANBU five minutes after this exam ends. We'll have to get a new teammate!" Yuri said, continuing her "sad" tone.

"It's what I've wanted since I was four." Itachi gave a small smile as he remembered asking Madara and then his father for the mask of recently killed ANBU. They had told him he would have to earn his own mask. His father may have his own reasons for wanting Itachi in ANBU, but really they were just coinciding with his own desires. When this was over, he would have that mask.

"Well, hopefully I'll be joining you there too." Yuri admitted. "The advanced missions sound challenging."

"I agree." Sana also admitted. "But if they don't let you in, Itachi, then they're stupid."

"Thanks." Itachi smiled. "But first, let's go lead this team into the path of the other team. Who are they Yuri?"

"The closer team is Sand and the next team is Cloud. Hmm. Cloud doesn't like you much Itachi, this could be interesting." Yuri laughed again. She was laughing a lot, actually. The second exam was right up her alley. So much plant life, it was almost four times denser than a normal forest, made her information gathering so simple that scouting the entire Forest of Death used much less chakra than usual. She wasn't feeling arrogant, just relieved. Her Kekkei Genkai used a lot of chakra and if she could save some then that was very good.

The three children jumped into the trees and started racing through the forest to find the Sand team. It only took ten minutes.

"Which Cloud team is ahead of us? Describe the members." Itachi asked quietly. They were all masking their chakra and the three shinobi below them had no idea they were being observed.

"Let's see… it's the one that had one adult and two older teen's."

"Ok." Itachi answered.

"Why would someone wait that long to become a Chuunin?" Sana wondered.

"Probably not part of a clan. The three of us are so our elders expect more of us. My friend isn't in a clan and she doesn't care if she becomes a Chuunin or not. My uncle is going to loose it if I fail this exam. He gave me a massively intense lecture on the evils of failing that I think I would run away if I failed instead of facing him. I suspect Itachi would be little black-and-blue if he failed, too." Yuri frowned. Her uncle was always intense and strict, but the lecture was so threatening that he had actually frightened her badly.

"My parents told me to do a good job and they looked forward to my success. My clan doesn't get 'emotional' like your uncle, but they can sure put forth the same message. I don't want to face them either if I loose. I might hide for a couple days before facing them, let them get over it." Sana said, also frowning. "I think it's worse because we are representing all of Konoha in the first multi-village Chuunin exam. None of our clans wants to see their members fail. They don't want the shame. If we were, like, five years younger, things would probably be a lot more relaxed and they wouldn't care as much."

Itachi gave a short laugh. He wondered what the village would be like when Sasuke was old enough to take the Chuunin exam. His father would likely be the Kage by then.

"We won't loose." Itachi said in a stern voice.

"No, we won't." The two girls agreed.

Sana smirked. "The Hokage would probably flay us alive before our parents got to us anyway."

That made Itachi chuckle. The vision of his father standing over his flayed body, disappointed because he didn't get to do it himself.

"Okay, I'll create three clones of the Cloud ninjas and lure them in the direction of the real ones. Sana and Yuri, conserve your chakra for the fight. We won't kill them unless we absolutely have to, but we will be incapacitating them so they won't come after us." Itachi concentrated on his memory of the three ninja, whom he had seen earlier in the day and three clones ran out of the forest directly into the path of the Sand ninja's.

The three Sand ninja's immediately gave chase, running deeper into the forest. The Konoha team stayed where they were. The plan was to wait until the teams met before moving closer. That way they wouldn't risk detection.

"They are almost together! Let's move out!" Yuri stood up and took off in the direction the Sand ninja had disappeared in. Itachi and Sana followed.

As they approached the Sand and Cloud teams they could hear loud voices, and it wasn't good news.

"The team we followed were clones! That means someone lead us here!" A girl, about fourteen yelled. Her headband and brown cloak labeled her as a Sand kunoichi.

"Let's wait for the other team and attack them together." One of the Cloud ninja's, a boy about the same age, responded.

"Great." Itachi sighed. "We've run into the only smart Cloud ninja in the Eastern continent. What kind of bad luck is that?"

Sana looked at the position of the six shinobi. "I can hold four with my jutsu, but there isn't a shadow where the other two are standing. Also, the shadow around the four is week and if it disappears my jutsu will end. There isn't any sun filtering down here so I'm having to rely on daylight creating shadows in a shady condition. It's much harder to control."

"I can get the other two." Yuri said.

"Okay. We'll go with that then. After you immobilize them I'll go down and incapacitate them. I'll do the shadow-bind ninja's first, left to right." Itachi lifted his hand in the air then dropped it. "Now!"

The Cloud and Sand ninja's suddenly found themselves unable to move as shadows and roots bound them in position. All six immediately roared their disapproval as Itachi, a small dark haired boy with a serious face walked calmly into the clearing. He pulled his sword and held it in front of him, looking at the blade.

"It's so much prettier when it's red. Why don't they make swords with red blades, I wonder? I keep having to kill people to dye it, but the color always comes off." He spoke quietly, but the eyes of the six shinobi in front of him went wide in shock.

"You aren't going to kill us!" One of the Cloud ninja's asked, almost pleading.

"But how else will my sword get red?" Itachi asked with an innocent voice.

"Just…just take the scroll and leave!" Another ninja said desperately.

"No. I'm not interested in the scroll." Itachi pouted.

"Please! This isn't a test of killing ability! It's just a stupid scroll!" One of the Sand ninja's pleaded.

"I want a red sword!" Itachi yelled as he plunged the sword into the ground. "And you're going to give it to me!"

"No! Please!" The six ninja's started to beg him to spare them.

Yuri jumped down into the clearing. She walked calmly up to Itachi and stroked his hair. "What's wrong, Itachi?" She was playing the part of an older sister calming the temper tantrum of a younger sibling.

"They don't want my sword to be red."

"Oh?" She looked sternly at the shinobi in front of her. "I wasn't aware you needed the permission of your prey before killing it. Did you take your medication this morning?"

"I don't like those stupid pills. They make me not want to kill."

"Ah! Well then I think we can throw them away. Now go have your fun and we can be on our way. I brought some candy for you as a treat."

Itachi gave a short chuckle and smiled. As he advanced the Cloud and Sand ninja's started to yell and plead for their lives. Itachi sheathed his sword and knocked them all out. After they were released from the jutsus they all fell to the ground. Itachi pulled his sword out again stabbed then all in the thigh, missing major arteries.

Sana jumped down to join them. "Good boy, Itachi!" She teased. Itachi smiled at her joke. The innocent little kid act always worked.

Yuri picked through the backpacks and returned with two scrolls. "They were both 'Heaven' scrolls. So that means there is one more 'Heaven' and three 'Earth' scrolls."

Itachi and Sana caught her hint immediately. She had purposely not mentioned which scroll they had. Something was wrong. The boy and girl glanced down at Yuri's hands. She held up three fingers then made a sign indicating Northeast. Another team had snuck up on them. She made another sign indicating Grass.

Itachi couldn't sense anyone nearby and grew worried. Then he remembered that Grass ninja's could disguise themselves as plants. He started looking for plants with unusual chakra signatures. A few seconds later he found them. He looked at Sana and saw that she still didn't know where they were.

The fact that the other team hadn't attacked yet was disconcerting. It meant they were waiting for something. They had seen the shadow-bind and root-bind jutsus so they knew what they were dealing with. Likely they were aware of Yuri's skills already. They may be having guess how Sana's jutsu worked, and they had only seen Itachi use a bit of Taijutsu and his sword. On the other hand the Konoha ninja's knew almost nothing about them. Itachi did know one thing about them – their packs did not contain enough supplies for the entire week and it was weak on weaponry.

Itachi's black eyes faded into red sharingans and his face became deadly serious. "We attack first. Yuri and I know where they are. Sana you follow us and use your jutsu if you can. Yuri, can you grab them from here?"

"No. They are using a jutsu to block my chakra in the roots around them. I can break it, but it will take a lot of chakra and I would be incapacitated for several hours afterward." She spoke quietly. She had been told of such jutsu's by her uncle but had never run into anyone who could use it. She wondered if someone from her clan was on that team.

"Then we will engage them. Hopefully that will distract them enough to drop their jutsu. Take advantage of the opening when it comes." He took off with Yuri behind him and Sana taking up the rear.

Within minutes they were standing in front of two boys and a girl, all thirteen to fifteen years old. They were all wearing shawls made of grass and Kasa style hats. The girl stepped forward and stared.

"Yuri. Traitor. How dare you stand up for Konoha. Your clan betrayed Grass and here you are, still alive. You should have been executed with your traitor father and mother."

"I don't know you." Yuri said in a strong voice. "I do know our clan was attacked for no reason. We never affiliated ourselves with Grass village and owed them no fealty. The attacks were unprovoked. Of course we left. Konoha took us in and I owe them my life."

"Your very short life. Traitor, prepare to die." She ran at Yuri and tried to hit her, but Yuri dodged and grabbed the girl's arm.

"What's your name?" Yuri asked.

"Youko." She tried to pull her arm out of Yuri's grip but ended up on the ground when the Konoha nin punched her in the stomach.

Yuri's chakra was still being blocked in the nearby roots so she was limited to Taijutsu and non-root jutsus. As soon as Youko hit the ground Yuri made the hand signs for an earth jutsu. The earth opened up and Youko fell into a hole. However, it only took less than a second for the Grass ninja to jump out of the hole before Yuri could close it.

"Good trick. Won't work on me though." Youko performed an earth jutsu of her own and a wall of dirt rose up behind Yuri who in turn ran straight at Youko. The wall collapsed on top of the two girls, but Yuri jumped out of the ground six feet away. Youko was no where to be seen. Yuri waited thirty seconds then dived back into the earth and pulled Youko out of the ground. She was still alive, but unconscious and would likely remain so for several hours. A large bruise was on her forehead and she probably had a concussion.

As soon as Youko had run at Yuri, Itachi had launched himself at the boy closest to him. This caused the remaining boy to become distracted momentarily. He stepped forward into an area that had just enough light for the shadow-bind jutsu and Sana caught him. She then stood holding him and watched Yuri and Itachi fight.

Itachi's opponent was very skilled at Taijutsu, but because wasn't very fast it decreased his effectiveness. The boy kept trying to cast earth jutsus, but because of Itachi's speed they always missed. Itachi finally stopped dodging and quickly cast a genjutsu. The boy fought it off at first but quickly succumbed, screaming in terror as he imagined hands reaching up from the ground to grab him and pull him under. He passed out, falling heavily to the ground.

Looking over at Sana and her captive Itachi pulled out his sword and stabbed the boy in the thigh then knocked him out. Sana sighed and dropped to her knees. "It's going to be a few hours before I can do that again, sorry."

"Yuri, where are the last two teams?" Itachi frowned. His opponent hadn't been much of a challenge. He hadn't even gotten dirty.

Yuri closed her eyes and concentrated. "They are still on the other side of the river. One Cloud and one Stone. They haven't found each other yet and the way they are moving around they won't for a while."

Itachi had been going through the backpacks. "It's the last 'Heaven' scroll. We'll find a place to rest for a few hours then cross the river." Itachi pulled his sword and stabbed the boy he had cast the genjutsu on in the thigh. He walked over to the unconscious girl but Yuri told him she had a concussion and wouldn't be going anywhere. He cleaned off his sword and sheathed it.

"So who was she?" Itachi asked.

"Don't know. She seemed to know me though. I wonder if she was sent here to kill me. No matter. If I see her again outside of the test I'll kill her if she attacks me. I won't be nice again." Yuri started to walk back into the woods in the direction of the river.

Itachi had heard the story of Yuri's clan and how they had been attacked, ambushed, in the middle of the night by Grass village ninja's. Most of the clan was slaughtered. Yuri had said, time and again that the attack was unprovoked. But now… now that he knew what his own father was plotting he wondered if Yuri's father, who had also been the clan leader, had been up to something as well. Yuri wouldn't necessarily know about it. She had been very young.

"Yuri. If your uncle is keeping secrets from you it could get you killed." Itachi spoke quietly but he suddenly stepped back two paces when Yuri stopped and quickly turned around, her hands balled into fists.

"Don't you think I god-damned know that!" She practically screamed the words and tears suddenly streamed down her face.

Sana gasped in shock. Yuri was usually even tempered and only cried when she was sad. This… anger or exasperation… was unheard of. "Yuri… what's wrong?" She asked, trying to keep the surprise out of her voice.

"I know… I know something must of happened. I'm old enough to start figuring things out on my own. Uncle won't tell me anything. He says we were the good guys and they were the bad guys. We were all killed. Do you know what it's like to loose everyone? One day they are talking and happy and walking about and the next day they are corpses waiting to be picked up and burned. She called me a traitor. What was my father doing that would make a village we weren't even a member of consider us traitors?" Yuri's tears were flowing freely and she sat down on the ground and buried her head in her knees. "I wish… I wish Yota was here. He always cheered me up."

'But Yota wanted to destroy the village you love.' Itachi thought to himself, confused. He watched Sana sit next to Yuri then wondered off. Sitting down on an exposed tree root he thought about what his father was doing. His clan was undergoing persecution, but there was no direct threat and they hadn't lost anything. However, his father felt that things were going to get worse if he didn't take action. And his idea of 'action' was to take out the elders and the Hokage and replace them with Uchiha. When that happened… then what? Itachi had no idea. The council and Hokage were only a few people. He wanted to find out what happened to Yuri's clan. It would help Yuri and, for some reason, Itachi felt it was important to him as well.

Returning to the older girls thirty minutes later he saw that Yuri was back to herself. "I'm sorry I blew up at you, Itachi." She said, embarrassed.

"It's okay. I was just… worried I guess. I spoke without thinking." Itachi wondered if there had been a better way to ask the question. He felt so confused sometimes when it came to dealing with other people. He could easily sense their moods, but he couldn't comprehend them. It was easier to just not deal with it at all. The doctor had said it wasn't normal to feel that way, but Itachi didn't know what the doctor meant by that, either.

"Well, let's go. There's a cave a mile up ahead that we can stay in for a while." Yuri said, giving her teammates a fake smile.

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Itachi volunteered to take the first watch since the two girls had used much more chakra than he had. Itachi then relaxed on another exposed tree root and listened to the forest. It was late afternoon and the forest was becoming darker. The insects and various animal sounds were constant. The forest was living entity. Massive, breathing and growing.

Four hours later Yuri wandered out of the small cave and frowned at Itachi, who was still reclining on the large tree root. "You were supposed to wake me two hours ago."

"I'm not tired and you and Sana needed rest to regain your chakra levels. Our effectiveness is reduced if we aren't at or near full capacity." Itachi spoke matter-of-factly.

"Sometimes you sound more like an old man than a ten-year-old boy." She sighed at sat on a large rock. "Sana is still asleep. You know, her jutsu is great and all, but it uses too much chakra. I wonder why she wasn't using the strang-hold jutsu."

"She can't control it perfectly. She can use her shadow to strangle people to death but she doesn't have enough control to just knock them out. That makes it a last defense type of jutsu."

"Yeah. It sure came in handy a couple missions back. I'm glad they put her on our team." Yuri chuckled at the memory. A highly experienced Rain ninja had actually been able to sneak up on her, but Sana had caught and killed him just before he could strike. Yuri was very grateful, of course, and had bought her teammate a gift certificate for a facial, manicure and pedicure at a spa in Konoha.

It was silent for a while then Yuri spoke again, this time in a quiet voice. "Your father has been spending a lot of time with my uncle lately. Uncle goes to the police station to talk to him for hours at a time. They even went to Grass together a few weeks ago." She was quiet for a few minutes as Itachi looked at her, brows creased. "What do you suppose they are up to?"

Itachi returned his gaze to the darkening forest. The sun was going down and the sounds were changing as the day animals went to sleep and the nocturnal animals awoke.

Finally Itachi spoke. "I didn't know your Uncle and my father were meeting. Perhaps your Uncle hired my clan to do something for him?"

"Possible. If they went to Grass it may have been to our old clan village. Maybe something was left behind, although I distinctly remember Uncle burning everything." She paused again. "I'm worried. Something is going on and I want Uncle and my other relatives to be safe but… I have a bad feeling."

Itachi couldn't answer. He suddenly realized that Yuri's nameless Uncle was part of his father's plot. As for why they were in Grass… obviously it was to retrieve some jutsu's of some kind. Scrolls or other jutsu-enhanced items. The Uncle was very paranoid and probably would only travel if Fugaku went himself. He wondered how many other people were also involved. Though, it was probably better if he did have a lot of people outside the clan standing behind him.

"Where are your other relatives?" Itachi finally asked.

"Waterfall and Rice. Uncle keeps asking them to move to Konoha, but frankly, he scares them so they haven't yet."

"What is his name, by the way?"

"He won't let me use it. He's massively paranoid. Everyone just calls him Uncle."

"Yeah. It feels strange to call someone not related to me 'Uncle'. Usually people who do that are being friendly and informal, but he wasn't either of those." Itachi looked around at the dark forest. "We might as well stay here until dawn. Sana can't use her jutsu very well in the dark, especially without a moon. Let's wake her up, though, and have some dinner."

"Those guys aren't going anywhere." Yuri said, referring to the two remaining teams on the other side of the river. "They still haven't found each other and they've stopped moving."

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"Nine shinobi. Amazing." The masked ANBU looked over the Cloud, Sand and Grass ninja's who were currently sitting or lying on the ground in the darkened forest. They had been gathered together and were waiting to be transported to the hospital.

"Itachi Uchiha is on that team. What did you expect?" Another masked ANBU stated.

"We saw him fighting a Cloud ninja recently outside the village. He saved the lives of some Academy students and then took the head to the Hokage instead of his father." A third ANBU spoke in a monotone.

"Is that why Danzou has us watching him?" The second ANBU asked.

"Who knows? All I know is I wouldn't mind him on a mission. He could probably do it himself and I could just sit back, relax, and watch the show." The first ANBU laughed.

"Maybe we should take bets on when the next two teams drop?" The second ANBU also laughed.

"Enough!" The third ANBU said sternly. "Remember your place. We are here as referees not to spread gossip."

"Still," The first ANBU ignored him. "It isn't going to be much of an exam if only one team lasts through the Forest of Death. What do you suppose the Hokage will do? Will he still make them take the third test?"

"Good question." The third ANBU replied hesitantly. "There wouldn't be much point to the whole thing then. Really, making Itachi take any kind of exam is pointless. The boy's such a high level genius he'll probably rival the Hokage someday in power. People like him are few and far between."

"Great." One of the Sand ninja's sighed. "The whole thing was a setup so the Hokage's star pupil could beat his enemies into the ground and then gloat."

The second ANBU kneeled down next to him. "You should lay back down and try to relax. We'll have you in the hospital soon." However, he had trouble disagreeing. Had the whole thing been a setup? If it was, what would the other villages do? He already knew Danzou wanted the boy, did this mean the Hokage wanted him as well? If the test was put in effect as the result of a treaty to replace war, then what would the other countries think? Would they consider it a broken promise?

"What a mess." The first ANBU said quietly, as if reading his partner's mind.

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Well, the second part of the exam is in full swing, but are the ANBU's suspicions just paranoid delusions or logical conclusions? One thing is for sure, though, Itachi is very bored. Tune in next week to see how it concludes.

Please review!

Updates on Friday's!


	37. Chapter 37 The Tower

Last week Itachi and his team took out three of the six teams competing in the second Chuunin exam.

Thanks for all the reviews and fav's! They are so much fun to read.

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by Naruto

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Chapter 37 – The Tower

The early morning forest was still dark as Itachi quietly followed the small monkey through the trees. Several minutes earlier it had appeared to him in a puff of smoke and asked him to follow it. Recognizing the animal as a summons he had awoken Sana and asked her to keep an eye on the camp while he scouted around.

Eventually Itachi was led to a large tree branch where someone was waiting. Approaching the figure cautiously Itachi did a double-take when he realized who it was.

"Lord Hokage, why are you here?" Itachi asked, so surprised he forgot to bow.

"Itachi." The man, who was dressed completely in black, laughed good naturedly, but there seemed to be very little "good nature" in the expression on his face. "You have caused me concern. I knew you were efficient but I admit I should have considered the options more carefully."

"What are you talking about?" Itachi wondered if the Hokage was going to pull him out of the exam.

"Leave the other teams alone and go to the tower." His smile disappeared and his face became deadly serious. "The other villages are accusing us of rigging the exam after you took out the three teams yesterday and managed to get all those teams expelled from the first exam. It could lead to another war. Do you understand?"

Itachi was furious and he activated his sharingan and looked the elderly man directly in the eye. "How dare you! I am not a weak little kid who has to be babysat!"

"Itachi!" Sarutobi yelled at him, causing the boy to back down. "You misunderstand. The end of the last war resulted in a treaty whereby the signers agreed to host a Chuunin exam. The exam would be used as a mini-war in which the winners of the second round would meet for combat in the third round in a public arena. If the only winner of the second round is a team from Konoha it will cause problems. Uchiha is the most powerful clan and they carry Konoha on their backs. Their presence on the battlefield has always caused fear in the hearts of their enemies.

"Stone and Cloud are already accusing us of rigging the exam because I let you compete. However I gave my word to you and your father that you would be in this exam. In order to keep everyone happy I am asking you to take your team to the tower and let the other two teams finish on their own.

"Itachi. I do not ask this lightly. You have seen war. You know what is at stake here."

Itachi suddenly had a flashback to the valley in Water country. Corpses for as far as the eye could see. Dead bodies of mothers holding their children. Husbands and wives. Dead shinobi. And the nightmares that had haunted him ever since.

"Are…are you exaggerating?" Itachi asked in a worried voice.

Sarutobi heard the boys tone and frowned. He had been told by Aki what had happened in Water country, and he felt bad to have to throw it in the boys face like this, but it was necessary. "I am not exaggerating."

"Then…" Itachi voice got even lower as he felt his spirits drop. "are you asking us to throw the match and let them win?" His father would not understand. Itachi silently wondered if he had planned on this happening and was hoping another war would erupt. Why did people keep putting such heavy responsibilities on him? Why couldn't they do this stuff themselves?

"No. After the two remaining teams fight each other for the correct scroll the winner will join you in the tower. The third exam will be a series of one-on-one battles. You may fight as you want and beat everyone you are able to beat. You are not giving up anything, but you are saving the village from another war." The Hokage put his hands behind his back.

"Okay. But we already have three of the same scroll. The other two can't possibly get in the tower now." Itachi gave in. He understood and while he was disappointed at not getting to take out all five teams he would get to go all out in the last exam at least. He also did not want to see another field of corpses again.

"Give me one. I can have an ANBU team deal with that. The other team will never realize their scroll was switched. And Itachi, don't tell anyone I spoke with you. Ever." Sarutobi took the scroll and disappeared.

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Itachi realized that convincing his teammates to go straight to the tower was going to be a problem. They were supposed to be out here for seven days and only one day had passed. Not to mention Sana and Yuri were looking forward to taking out the other two teams. And if they discovered the missing scroll there would be hell to pay, he was sure of it.

However, Itachi was in for a surprise when he returned to camp. Walking close to cave he could see that both Sana and Yuri were asleep. No. Not asleep. Unconscious. His sharingan activated and he scanned the area for anything unusual. The sun was now up, although all the good it did in the thick forest was brighten the area.

Itachi dodged quickly to the left as a long mechanical tentacle-like contraption shot past his face. Pulling out a kunai he parried two more thrusts as more tentacles targeting him. He quickly determined their trajectory and launched a volley of kunai in that direction then ran toward the hidden enemy. Whoever it was, they were masking their chakra so effectively that his sharingan could barely see it.

When he approached close to where he estimated the tentacles had come from he stopped dead in his tracks. Two very strong chakra signatures suddenly appeared. One on either side of him. And one of them felt familiar. He hadn't sensed it since he was four or five or six he wasn't sure exactly when, but he did know who it belonged to.

"Orochimaru. What are you doing here? I thought you ran away with your tail between your legs." Itachi turned around and faced the pale man, who was smiling broadly.

"Itachi Uchiha. How nice to meet you again. Only this time you are alone without your guardians." Orochimaru's effeminate voice sounded oddly chilling, but Itachi let no emotion show on his face. He did look the man over and was surprised at his attire. Looking behind him he saw that the man's companion was also dressed the same. A long black cloak with red clouds, blue pants and white leggings that attached the pants to the sandals. They also wore dark polish on their finger and toe nails.

"What's with the fashion statement? Kimonos too expensive now?" Itachi, who was already in a bad mood from speaking to the Hokage was now in an extremely bad mood.

"Very amusing, young man. I could say the same for you, after all, all the Uchiha dress alike. That black jumpsuit you have on with the Uchiha crest on the back is the exact same thing young Sasuke is wearing today." Orochimaru laughed.

Itachi's eyes flared in anger. "What were you doing near my brother! You keep away from him!" He yelled so loud his voice took on a horse edge to it.

"Or what?"

"I'll kill you!" Itachi started to run toward the snake-man when another tentacle shot out at him. He ended up having to turn around in mid-stride and parry with his kunai.

"I don't think you'll be killing anyone today." The man who spoke had a gravelly, low voice and the words were measured and calm.

"Who are you!" Itachi yelled at him.

"Temper, temper. If you don't calm yourself down, _now_, you will do something you will regret. I was told you were a force to be reckoned with but if this is all you are then we'll be leaving."

Itachi stared at him. The… thing in front of him was not a man but a puppet. The man who spoke must be inside of it. The puppet was long and flat, like a beetle perhaps, and a long scorpion's tail protruded from the back of it. Five mechanical tentacles were still extended and waving around in the air above it.

"Who are you?" Itachi asked, clenching his teeth. He didn't like to be lectured.

"Sasori of the red sands. Lately of Akatsuki. And we are here to see _you_." Sasori said, clearly irritated. "Although why Leader would be interested in you is beyond _my_ comprehension. "

Something clicked and Itachi forced himself to calm down. Could this "Leader" be the same person he had spoken to a couple years earlier when he was with Dr. Motoi?

"A skinny, short, ten-year-old boy who throws temper tantrums and yells at people. Arrogant as hell, too." Sasori was laying it on thick.

Itachi wasn't listening to the insults anymore. If "Leader" was the same person, the these two people confronting him were working for Madara. Yet Itachi had been specifically told not to mention Madara's name to anyone. Neither Sasori nor Orochimaru seemed to be openly threatening him. The attacks were easy to parry and now they just seemed to want to insult him.

In a much calmer voice Itachi spoke to Sasori, whom he felt he could tolerate slightly better than Orochimaru. "What is going on? I am in the middle of a Chuunin exam and my teammates and I have things to do."

"Not according to what I heard." Sasori answered.

"Sasori…" Itachi suddenly remembered something else. "Kabuto."

"Yes, now you remember." The dry, gravelly laugh that came from the puppet was creepy.

"Where is…" Itachi started to ask for Madara but Sasori quickly cut him off.

"We won't discuss him here. Now. We aren't here to fight. Your abilities are already well known. A place in our organization has been reserved for you." Sasori saw Itachi's puzzled face and explained further. "Akatsuki."

"New Dawn? What's that about? I'm going to become a Chuunin and join ANBU. I haven't any idea what you guys are talking about."

Orochimaru spoke up, "You will find out soon enough. Wait for someone to contact you again."

Itachi had enough and launched himself at the puppet. He hadn't had a good fight yet and he was sure he could take them on. Sasori released several tentacles at the boy, but Itachi was fast and flexible. He dodged every one of Sasori's attacks and landed hard on the top of the puppet, fully expecting it to crack. However there was no damage.

More tentacles came out to grab at the boy and Itachi jumped straight up into the air, pulled out his sword from its scabbard on his back and did a summersault in the air to change his momentum. That accomplished he was now falling toward the scorpion's tale with his sword held up ready to strike. Once again he came down hard but the sword bounced off the tail, leaving only a nick where it had hit.

Itachi immediately jumped back as the tail swung around in an attempt to hit him. He jumped up again, this time targeting the small head that protruded from the front of the puppet. His speed was such that neither Sasori nor Orochimaru could see him move and this time when Itachi brought his sword down it connected and severed the head.

Thinking that the puppet was now blind, he ran back to the tail and swung his sword down again inside of the joint at the base. The tail came off.

"Why you little brat!" Sasori roared at him. "Do you know how long it's going to take me to fix that?" The puppet lifted its arms and started to form some signs. Three human shaped puppets appeared and rushed at the boy simultaneously.

Itachi jumped straight up into the air and quickly formed the seals for a fire ball jutsu and sent it straight at the puppets. He landed on a thick branch above the scene. After the flames passed he saw that only one of the puppets had been destroyed, the other two were unaffected. A volley of senbon were launched up at Itachi and he dodged them all.

"Watch out there, Itachi. Sasori's fangs are poisoned." Orochimaru called up to the boy. "And so are mine, Sasori, if you kill the boy."

"Mind your own business." Sasori's voice was angry. The boy was so fast that he was avoiding all of his attacks. He briefly considered bringing out some of his more powerful puppets, but realized that it would either be pointless or if it did kill Itachi, Leader would rip him into a million pieces. Calming down Sasori realized that none of this was worth the trouble.

"We will call this a draw, Itachi. You are indeed powerful. You may consider yourself a member of Akatsuki." Sasori reached out with his tentacles and picked up the severed head, tail and broken puppet and stored them inside the larger puppet body. "You will be contacted for your first mission, at which point you will be given more information."

"I never said I wanted to join!" Itachi said, jumping back down to the ground.

"It was never an option with you boy. You were chosen. That is all there is to it." Sasori spoke as he turned around and disappeared into the forest, Orochimaru followed closely behind.

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Itachi didn't say anything about either of his meetings to his teammates. They woke up about an hour after the two Akatsuki had left. Itachi looked at them and realized they had been knocked out with poison. The two girls were listless and Sana had even thrown up.

"Let's stay here longer." Itachi said quietly. It was a good spot to rest, the small cave was easily defensible and while he was sure he could carry one of the girls, there was no way he could carry both. For one thing they were three and four years older than him and about a foot taller.

The two girls agreed and laid back down without comment. Using the medical guide he got for his birthday he mixed up a generic antidote and gave it to them. They felt a little better afterward, but still sleepy.

A few hours later an ANBU came by and asked Itachi about the health of his comrades.

"They are resting and should be well in a few hours." He answered quietly. The ANBU had then entered the cave and checked them himself.

"Okay. They are fine. Just checking. We aren't supposed to leave you guys out here if you are ill." The ANBU disappeared in a swirl of smoke.

Itachi knew the man wasn't checking on the health of the girls. He was checking to see why they weren't at the tower yet. The Hokage probably blew a blood vessel when they didn't turn up on time. Sighing, Itachi laid down on the exposed root outside the cave and closed his eyes to meditate. There was no sun to assist his concentration so he imagined one. It worked just as well.

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The trio approached the tower on the third day of the exam. Yuri and Sana hadn't felt like arguing when Itachi had told them he was bored and wanted to end the exam. They had to agree. They had their fun, been poisoned somehow, and now felt like they were recovering from the flu. It was time to go home.

They found the door that had the same number as the gate they had entered through and stood looked at it for a couple minutes. Itachi really didn't feel like sitting inside a building for four days, but waiting outside would probably be even worse.

"Maybe if the other team is here already or comes shortly they will end the exam soon and we won't have to wait around." Itachi said hopefully.

"That would be too much to hope for, I think, but I will anyway." Yuri said, smiling.

Sana grasped the door handle and opened it. They entered into a large rectangular shaped room that looked like it was probably used for training. There was a mural in front of them on the far end of the room and they quickly gathered that they needed to open a heaven and earth scroll.

Itachi dug through his pack for the scrolls, not wanting the girls to see that one was missing, and handed them over. Sana and Yuri opened them up and threw them on the ground. A swirl of smoke appeared and when it cleared Yurina was standing in front of them.

"Congratulations! You finished! I never knew you had it in you! What a surprise! NOT!" She laughed at the looks of hate her three charges were giving her. "Cheer up, guys, you're done. When the other two teams are accounted for the exam will end and after a short meeting with the Hokage you are free to go until the third exam starts."

"When will that be?" Yuri asked.

"He'll tell you. I'm not supposed to say too much right now." Yurina smiled in apology.

"That's okay." Sana said, returning her smile.

"There are showers, bathrooms, and cots but you need to provide your own food. You are not allowed to leave to leave the building so if you don't have enough food you're screwed."

"We're fine. We packed well." Itachi said emotionlessly.

"Good. Well, I have to be going. Good luck, and I'll see you again after the Hokage's speech." Yurina disappeared in a swirl of smoke.

"I say we go find those showers." Yuri said with feeling. "I don't even care if they're not heated. I just want some water on me." The other two had to agree with her idea.

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The last team wandered in the next day and the exam was promptly ended. It was the team from the Village Hidden in the Stones. It consisted of two boys and a girl, all of whom looked to be about thirteen years old. All three wore their long hair in top-knots and Itachi was reminded of the young boy he had met on his first mission. He wondered what the kid was up to now. He also was a student of Madara, albeit an indirect student, but a student nonetheless. Was he also a member of Akatsuki?

Itachi looked at the Stone ninja's, trying to gauge their abilities. In order to be here they would have had to have fought against the Cloud ninja's yet none of them were bruised or scratched and their clothes weren't overly dirty. He hoped that meant they had some skill. As for size, they were average height for their age and weren't overly muscular. None of them carried swords. He remembered noting that they were unprepared when they had gone through their packs at the beginning of the test, yet they didn't seem to be suffering in any way. Could that have been a trick? If it was it certainly fooled him. He made a mental note to not rely on appearances.

The Hokage walked up and called everyone to attention. He then gave them the same speech he had given Itachi, about the exams being created to replace war. He then went on to explain the third exam.

"A hierarchically structured one-on-one fight will occur in one month's time. This will give you time to train." He handed a chart to one of the proctors who walked over to the six Genin and held it up. Itachi saw that each of his teammates was fighting against a Stone ninja. He was fighting a boy named Genya Watanabi in the first round. He would have to research the boy to find out his fighting methods as well as his strengths and weaknesses. Luckily he had a month to do so.

The Hokage continued speaking. "There will also be a festival going on for three days during the fights to entertain the visitors. Any questions?"

One of the Stone ninja's spoke. "So if we are fighting this way, does that mean there will be only one winner? I mean, only one Chuunin selected?"

"Good question. Chuunin will be selected not on whether you win or loose a fight, but on how well you conduct yourself during the battle. The Kage's present will all discuss the battles and make the decisions after the last battle has taken place. The selections will be announced during the festival on the last day."

"So all of us or none of us could pass." Yuri said matter-of-factly.

"Correct." The Hokage confirmed, then smiled as he saw relief pass over the faces of the six children. He realized that in a lot of ways they were asking the impossible of such young children, but on the other hand being a Chuunin carried such a heavy weight of responsibility it was important that they chose the correct people for the position. Lives depended on it.

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Itachi walked to the police station and hoped his father was in his office. He wanted to make his report then go home and plan for the next month of training. Yurina had met up with them after the meeting and said that she would train Sana, Yuri would be trained by her uncle and Itachi would be trained by his father. It was the usual arrangement, although Yurina wanted updates on their progress occasionally.

Stepping into the station he saw Shisui half asleep behind the reception desk.

"Wake up, cousin." Itachi threw a kunai and Shisui expertly caught it, then laughed at him.

"I wasn't that far gone. So you passed? What was it like?" Shisui was excited to hear the news.

"I passed and it was boring. We took out three teams within the first few hours then vacationed in a cave for a couple days." He yawned, then blinked his eyes. He hadn't realized he was tired. Although he had stayed awake while the girls slept off the poison and he hadn't been able to sleep much in the tower.

"Kabuto was by a couple days ago. He wanted to see you when you got back."

"Hn." Itachi had never really been sure if he liked the boy or not. Sometimes he was tolerable, but something was just _off_ about him. And after meeting his master he was not looking forward to seeing Kabuto again.

"If I happen to run into him that will be sufficient." Itachi said with an air of finality.

Shisui narrowed his gaze in suspicion but dropped the subject. Fugaku walked into the lobby and gazed at his son, silently.

Itachi bowed, then formally addressed his father. "Lord Fugaku I have successfully completed the second of three exams. The third exam will take place in thirty days. Does this meet with your approval?"

Something about the way Itachi was speaking sent a chill up Fugaku's spine. He wondered what had happened during the test. He could see dark circles under the boy's eyes and the lines that were formed by the shape of his cheeks against his small nose were longer and deeper. He almost looked like an old man. Fugaku felt a twinge of pity for his son. He knew he was pushing him hard. Too hard. But he had no other choice. There was no one else who could do it. Too much was at stake.

"Itachi. You have performed well, as expected of my son. Now go home and get some sleep for a couple days, then begin your training. We will speak more later." He turned around and left the lobby. The statement was said without warmth and Itachi felt empty inside. His father wasn't all that emotional but for some reason Itachi had expected more. Without saying anything he turned around and left the building.

As Itachi entered the Uchiha compound he was congratulated by several clansmen who passed him. Itachi smiled appropriately and thanked them. But he felt hollow inside. He was bothered by Yuri's outburst, the knowledge that Madara was running an organization called "Akatsuki", his father's cold shoulder back at the station and the Hokage's insistence that he back off attacking the other teams in the test to save the village. He couldn't believe he had actually looked forward to the test. How fake it had been. How disappointing.

"Itachi! Itachi!" Sheeta and Aya ran up to him. "Did you pass?"

"I passed. I now have one more test to go through in thirty days." Itachi tried to smile, but he found himself unable to show a fake smile to his two friends and frowned instead.

Sheeta looked at her sister who shrugged. "What's wrong? Isn't that good? No one can beat you."

"Maybe that's the problem." Itachi said quietly to himself.

"You want someone to beat you?" Aya said, shocked.

"Yes. A competitor worthy of me. I am bored with having to hold back. I want a fight." Itachi was still speaking quietly.

"Who? Lord Fugaku?" Sheeta asked curiously.

"No."

"Itachi, why don't you go home and sleep. I don't want to make you mad, but you look awful. You might not be thinking clearly either." Aya put her hand on his shoulder and looked him in the eyes. They were in the regular black pupil form, but the whites were streaked so badly with red that it looked like he had almost no white at all.

Itachi nodded his head and walked away without saying anything.

That evening when Fugaku headed toward Itachi's room to wake him up for a discussion Mikoto blocked his way.

"Something was wrong with him when he came home. He was mumbling something about no one being good enough to fight him. Even Sasuke was scared to get near him. I think we'd better let him sleep." She was wringing her hands and looking at the floor as she spoke. She hated to admit it, but the boy had scared her badly, and she knew Sasuke had been frightened because he had gone to his room and sat on his bed, silently crying.

Fugaku felt his heart tighten. It had been a long time since he had thought of his own father, but the memories suddenly flooded back. As well as the misgivings and fears. Itachi was mentally unstable. The extent of that instability had been difficult to measure because, as Dr. Yakushi had explained, classifying children was nearly impossible.

If Itachi was too unstable ANBU would never take him. On the other hand, would the Uchiha want to train a killer who was too unstable for ANBU? It was a bad situation no matter how he looked at it.

"I won't wake him, Mikoto. Let him sleep. Did he take his pills?" Fugaku spoke in a low voice.

"Yes. His regular dose is two pills, or three if he is stressed out. I gave him three and he swallowed them. He fell asleep almost immediately."

Fugaku felt something tugging at his shirt and looked down. Sasuke was looking up at his father with big, teary eyes. "Daddy! Is Itachi going to be okay?"

He bent down and picked the boy up. "Yes, he'll be fine. He's just very tired, and when people get tired they don't think straight." He was a little put out about being called "daddy" instead of the more formal "father" but he could see that Sasuke wasn't being disobedient and decided not to correct him. "Aren't you supposed to be asleep?"

"I was worried."

Fugaku put the boy back down and let Mikoto take him back to bed. He quietly entered Itachi's room and sat down on a chair. He stayed there for the next four hours, watching his son sleep. The boy woke up frequently, jerking violently and once sitting straight up. He would then lay back down and immediately go back to sleep without acknowledging that there was another person in the room.

What was going through the boy's mind as he slept? What nightmares could scare a boy who was raised to be a killer? Fugaku had nightmares of monsters or ghosts or of being chased. They were normal and never scared him after he was awake. But Itachi's dreams seemed to scare him and perhaps were responsible in part for some of his actions.

Fugaku finally gave up and left the room, making sure he didn't wake his son as he exited. Slipping into bed he had a sudden urge to hold Mikoto in his arms and as she rested her head against his chest, sighing, he smiled.

"Sasuke's getting big, isn't he?" Fugaku said quietly.

"Yes he is. He'll be five in a month and a half. Time to go to school." Mikoto replied, smiling.

"Doesn't seem like it's been that long."

"A lot has happened and time runs quickly." Mikoto looked up at her husband and stroked his face. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Worried about Itachi, about what he'll be like when he comes out of all of this. If he remains unstable I may have to name Sasuke as my heir. That could send Itachi over the edge. He doesn't want Sasuke to go through everything he has. However, it is very obvious that Sasuke has a much more stable personality."

Mikoto sighed again and rested her head back on Fugaku's chest. His heart was beating fast, but she found it comforting. Even so it was a long time before she could go back to sleep.

Sasuke idolized his brother. If Itachi was disgraced and pushed out of the line of succession Sasuke would probably not take it well. And Sasuke was a very, very stubborn little boy who refused to back down. Mikoto often wondered, as she argued with the toddler over clothes, food, bath-time and chores, what kinds of trouble she was going to have with him when he got older.

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Next week Itachi begins his training and the third exam begins.

Please review!

Updates on Fridays


	38. Chapter 38 Genjutsu

Last week Itachi completed the second exam, held in the forest of death. However the Hokage asked him not to defeat any more teams during the exam and instead return to the tower. Unfortunately two Akatsuki members were waiting for him when he returned to his team's campsite. Orochimaru and Sasori informed him of his new membership in the organization and told him to wait for further orders.

Thanks for all the reviews and favs!

Since someone asked – all the personal info is in my profile, but it's vague, yes. You know, basically, I'm a girl and I live in Amegakure, in the rain. Although today it's sunny. I guess that's because Pein-sama and Konan-sama have left and are on their way to Konoha. I looked at the long-term forecast and apparently they'll be back next week – but the forecasts here are always wrong, so who knows? XD

Disclaimer: Kishimoto is owned by naruto

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Chapter 38 - Genjutsu

Itachi slept better after his father left his room. He had been very aware of the man sitting in the chair three feet from his bed. The tension and anxiety he felt over his presence created nightmares that kept waking him up. Why would his father sit there for four hours just watching him? Did he expect something to happen? If so, what?

Sitting up in his bed he sat for a while meditating in the early morning sunlight. He was feeling a lot better and when his mother opened his door a few minutes later he smiled at her.

"Are you getting up for breakfast, or would you like to sleep a little longer?" Mikoto said, smiling.

"I'm getting up." Itachi slid off the bed.

That morning's breakfast consisted of the usual fish, rice and toast and was accentuated with Itachi's account of how his team took out three other teams. Fugaku was suspicious of his son's story but didn't say anything. It was obvious the boy could have taken out the other two teams as well. He was aware of the accusations made by the representatives of the other countries. The Hokage must have spoken to Itachi and convinced him to back off.

Getting up from the table Fugaku paused at the door, his back to his family. "Itachi, I would like to discuss your training in my meeting room."

"Yes father." Itachi stood up and quietly walked down the hall.

"Itachi. It is obvious what happened out there." Fugaku sat on the cushion at the front of the room while Itachi sat in front of him. "I am not amused. You may work for the Hokage, but you will take your orders from me."

"Yes father." Itachi saw no point in clarifying the matter.

"This time there was no harm done. You are still in the final exam. Have you considered your training for the next twenty-nine days?" Fugaku was all business as he folded his arms in front of him and looked at his son.

"I shall gather intelligence on the fighting styles of the three Stone ninja through stealth and observation. I shall also monitor my teammates for any new jutsu's they may learn in the next month. Other than that I will be training to improve my own jutsu and genjutsu." Itachi's plan was simple and logical and was no doubt exactly what all the other participants were doing. "I will also be on guard for them spying on me and I plan on misleading their observations."

"Hmm. A good plan. I will oversee your training. I believe you should spend more time on your genjutsu. You have mastered ninjutsu enough to start focusing on other areas. Genjutsu and the ability to copy jutsu are two of the most important features of the Sharingan and I want you to demonstrate both during the exam. A skilled Uchiha warrior can enter a fight and win through Genjutsu alone against most opponents. The rest of the fights can be won by copying jutsu – which is where the knowledge of Ninjutsu and Taijutsu comes in."

"Yes father."

"Rest today and we will begin training tomorrow." Fugaku stood up and looked down at the boy, who was still sitting on his legs on a mat. He was still small and very skinny. He definitely had his mother's body type. It had always made him look younger than his age. However, his face was older somehow.

Itachi stood up and kept his eyes on the floor as he walked out of the meeting room, past his father. He had a lot of work to do and resting was not an option. But first he had to find a Bingo book. There was usually a copy on the coffee table in the living room.

As he entered the large room he saw his mother watching some drama on TV and Sasuke attacking his building blocks with a stuffed dinosaur that had a homemade forehead protector wrapped around its head. Itachi picked up the book and sat down on the floor next to his brother.

"Are you going to play with me today?" Sasuke asked hopefully.

"I don't have time." Itachi said as he leafed through the book. It appeared to be brand new as there weren't any crease lines or battered pages.

"We just got that in yesterday, Itachi." Fugaku had entered the living room. "Check out Mist. I believe there is someone you might recognize."

Sasuke leaned over and watched as Itachi flipped through the pages. Gasping, Itachi looked up at his father. "Kisame Hoshigaki is a missing nin?"

"That was the man who assisted you in the purchase of your sword, I believe." Fugaku smirked. "Apparently he killed a feudal lord, however I find it hard to believe that would be the reason he would defect. Really, considering how ruthless the village is, the reason must have been phenomenal. I must ask that you make an inquiry of your 'teacher' as to whether he has seen him recently. I have a feeling he has."

"He's scary." Sasuke looked at Itachi. "He isn't around here is he?"

"No. He won't…" Itachi was about to tell his brother Kisame wouldn't hurt him when he remembered the discussion in the Inn.

"_But the villagers… the army went along with the orders to leave no one alive? Didn't the shinobi try to protect them?" Yuri said in a small voice._

"_Orders is orders, little girl. If you are told to slit the throat of a cute three year old, you had better have that kids head in your hands when you return from your mission. Morals are few and far between in this line of business. Better figure that out quick, kid." Zabuza's voice was bitter. _

_Kisame gave Zabuza another dirty look. "From what the messengers tell us the army arranged it so that the shinobi would engage the rebels while they slaughtered the villagers. Everyone was spread out all over the valley. We have no record of individual 'heroics' if that is what you want to call such a thing, but in the end nothing came of it."_

Itachi felt a momentary twinge of fear, but he quickly suppressed it.

"He won't what?" Sasuke pressed, his eyes wide with worry. "He's scary looking!"

"Sasuke, he won't get you. Don't worry about it. He'd have to go through all the other Uchiha first. It isn't possible." Itachi tried to calm his brother down.

The young boy wiped away a tear that had escaped from one eye. "Will you be here too? You're the best. Everyone says so. I bet you could stop him."

Surprised, Itachi couldn't say anything for a moment. Finally, he smiled. "Yeah. I'll protect you Sasuke. Don't worry about it." He got up and walked out into the garden. He needed to look up a couple people and he couldn't do it if Sasuke was going to get creeped out over the pictures. Luckily the boy didn't follow him as he usually would.

Opening the book again he looked for Orochimaru. There wasn't any new information. He thumbed forward to Wind country. A man with "Red Sands" in his name had to be from the deserts of either Wind or Stone and he guessed it was probably Wind. Soon he was looking at the man's profile. He had been a missing nin for almost two decades and was responsible for the deaths of several hundred people.

"The book leaves a lot of stuff out, doesn't it?" Itachi asked his father, who had followed him out into the garden and was now sitting against a porch railing with one leg dangling over the edge.

"It does. We have other sources we use to collect information, including access to ANBU files. Who are you interested in?"

"Sasori of the Red Sands."

Fugaku was silent for a moment. The infamous Sasori was an S-Class missing ninja. In fact, he was so notorious that he would make other S-Class ninja's fear for their lives.

"Did you meet him?" The clan chief's voice was quiet, almost inaudible.

Itachi nodded his head slightly.

"Was someone else with him?"

"Not who you think." Itachi also spoke quietly.

"Who?"

"Orochimaru." Itachi's words made Fugaku clench his fists in anger.

"Those two working together. Only one person could accomplish that."

"Akatsuki." Itachi whispered. "They said I am a member. I will be contacted later."

"This is his doing." Fugaku was not happy with the news. It meant that Itachi's time would be further divided. However, it also meant that perhaps he could get closer to finding out what Madara was up to.

"Father? What are your orders?" Itachi asked matter-of-factly.

Sighing, Fugaku looked at the small boy. It would not go well if he couldn't multitask all of his responsibilities. He remembered how badly Itachi slept and how wound up he could get. Itachi bottled up his emotions until outside stimuli exploded them, then he would become violent and irrational.

"Itachi, you will have to go along with Madara. We are not in a position to fight him. However, your orders are to learn more about the man so that one day he can be killed. Our clan cannot prosper with him out there causing trouble. You will also have to keep up on your other responsibilities. We are in a precarious situation in Konoha. Things are not going well for us and you are going to help turn the tide back in our favor."

"Yes father." Itachi bowed his head in acknowledgement. He knew his father would say that. He had even debated whether or not to even tell his father about Akatsuki but in the end he didn't really trust Madara anymore. Not knowing how to handle the issue he decided that telling his father was the best way to deal with it.

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Lunch was spent with Shisui, Sheeta and Aya eating ramen. Shisui was spending about six hours a day training and only four working at the police station. Sheeta and Aya were studying and training. They were excited because they were going on their first mission in another week.

"And guess who is taking us!" Sheeta was so excited she practically yelled.

Itachi smirked. "Who?"

"Rumiko and Lady Mikoto! We don't know what the mission is yet, but Rumiko told us was the equivalent of a 'C' rank and promised that we would be back in time to see you fight in the third exam."

"Only if you don't mess it up." Aya said sarcastically.

"You're the one who messes stuff up." Sheeta glared at her older sister.

"What is Nui doing? I haven't seen her in a long time." Shisui asked, trying to divert the impending argument.

"She's an apprentice at the hospital. Dr. Yakushi gave her tons of stuff to read and she has to work there too. Fumitake is busy, too. He has to go through various files of missing nin's to try to find clues about their last known location. He's pretty good. They brought in three people last week using his clues." Aya loved to brag about her older brother and sister. They both worked so hard and received so much praise that she was sure they were amazing.

Sheeta saw it a little more realistically. "Nui is sleepy a lot because of her long hours and Fumitake is depressed because he isn't strong enough to go on missions. He is also not responding to his medicines as well as he was a few months ago. And he is worried because Nui refuses to get married."

Aya blushed and glanced sideways at Shisui. "She refuses to allow a betrothal contract. Our foster mother asked her to consider a fake one to make Fumitake feel better, but she also refuses to lie to him."

"Sounds complicated." Itachi frowned. Why was nothing ever easy? "Our clan uses people, Sheeta. She should just do it and get it over with."

"What happens if she fights it?" Aya asked.

"She is a woman who can probably have children." Shisui echoed Itachi's tone. "We need children. She will have no choice in the matter."

"I know. Mother told us so. It's…scary though. Nui is scared, but she said she doesn't know why." Sheeta said in a small voice.

The four children sat in silence for a while. None of them really understood what Nui or Fumitake or even the adults who were pushing them were going through. They understood the words, but not the feelings. Instead a sense of foreboding, of loosing control descended on them instead.

"It's okay." Shisui finally said quietly. "We are all together and we can look out for each other, right?"

Aya and Sheeta smiled and nodded in agreement. Itachi, who had just caught sight of Kabuto waving to him, frowned. Once again he found himself unable to lie to his friends.

"I'll try. But… if I'm not here… I…" Itachi trailed off, not really sure what he was trying to say. He wasn't even sure what he was feeling. "I need to go talk to Kabuto." Itachi stood up, put enough money on the counter to pay for all four meals and walked away. The three remaining children watched, sorrow in their eyes. Itachi was alone and there was very little they could do about it.

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"I've got something for you, Itachi." Kabuto said, pushing his glasses up as he spoke. He was smiling broadly as he held out a brown paper wrapped package.

"What?" Itachi was suddenly leery, suspecting the package came from Sasori.

"I don't know what it is. Master wanted me to give it to you." He paused as Itachi continued to stare at it suspiciously.

Sighing, Itachi took the package. "Thanks, I guess." It was medium-weight and flimsy. He guessed it was clothing of some kind. Probably that ridiculous looking cloak. 'I bet it doesn't fit right either.' Itachi said to himself. He hated bad fitting clothing. It wasn't really something he obsessed over, it was just annoying.

"Are you okay?" Kabuto asked quietly. "I haven't seen you in forever. Father keeps me training at the hospital when I'm not on missions."

"Oh. Um. My father has me training all day too." The two boys started to walk towards the park. They finally sat down on a bench near a swingset. School was still in session so there were only about three or four toddlers and their mother's playing in the park.

"Kabuto?" Itachi asked hesitantly.

"Yeah?"

"You said you were found on a battlefield. You were the only survivor. Do you… do you remember anything about it?" Itachi didn't like talking about personal matters, especially other people's feelings, but he was curious.

"I remember being found. Nothing before. There were bodies all over, the stench of blood. I felt… an overwhelming fear. Father found me. I heard about what happened in Water country. I was glad no one survived when I found out. It's more difficult as time passes to accept what happened. That I have no family. They would have wanted me with them, but now we are apart forever." The white haired boy looked at the ground as he spoke. For some reason he felt he could talk to Itachi and nothing he said would be used against him.

"So you believe in the 'leave no orphans' philosophy of war?" Itachi asked, curiously.

"That's so… final. I don't know. When you put it like that… perhaps not. I'm only eleven. Maybe I'll find a way to free myself from him. I suppose I'm just unlucky. What do you think?" Kabuto smirked as he looked at the serious boy sitting next to him.

"It is final. But to be an orphan without a clan is unthinkable for one raised as I was."

"True. Father treats me well, and I know he grew to love me as his son, but I wish he had married. Brothers and sisters would have been fun. Having Yota living with us was great. Even though he was more messed up than me, he was still like a brother."

They sat in silence for a while, lost in their own thoughts. Slowly, the toddlers and their mothers left the playground and silence spread across the area. Occasionally the wind blew the swings and the chains would clank together.

Finally Itachi stood up. "I'll see you around, Kabuto."

"Yeah. I'm coming to the fight, so you better put on a good show!" Kabuto watched as Itachi walked away. He could see something was wrong. Itachi was different somehow. Perhaps it was just age. He was ten now. However, he doubted it. Kabuto knew what it was like to see a battlefield of corpses, and now Itachi knew that too. It was not something you could pretend never happened. It was not something you ever "got over".

"I guess we're a lot alike, Itachi." Kabuto spoke to the empty air. "Neither of us is in control of our futures or our pasts. It's too bad."

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A few days later Itachi was perched on a thick tree branch spying on the Stone team he would be fighting in a few short weeks. He had been there for six hours so far and had not really learned a lot. The three teenagers were doing nothing more than basic earth jutsus. Itachi copied them with his Sharingan and was hanging around hoping they would do something more interesting. It was going to be a very short and boring fight if this was all they had.

Finally he gave up and hopped back into the forest, heading toward the village. He would just have to return several more times. Training had just started so maybe they were building up to something.

Itachi's mind wandered back to the package he had received from Kabuto. When he had returned home and opened it he had discovered a black cloak with red clouds, a forehead protector with the leaf scratched out, pants, shoes, and assorted gear. Of course the cloak was too long, reaching his ankles. He had shown the items to his father, so he would know what was going on and Fugaku had some very sage advice for his son.

"_Itachi, there comes a time in every boys life when he has to grow up. Part of that is learning how to use a needle and thread. The other part is learning how to properly beg a woman to do the hemming for you. The improper application of either lesson results in exactly the same outcome: one hell of a lot of blood."_

"_So… I should… " Itachi was confused_

"_Your mother is sworn to secrecy in all matters. Show her where the cloak is and ask her to hem it for you. If that doesn't work, sit in front of her and hem it yourself, but do such a bad job that she will get mad, take it away from you and do it herself." Fugaku was smirking. He didn't really know why he was teasing his son, but he was having fun doing it. "Don't let Sasuke or anyone else see anything."_

"_Yeah. Ok." Itachi waited until an hour after Sasuke had gone to bed then approached his mother, who, contrary to what his father had said, agreed to hem it. An hour later it fit perfectly. He wondered why his father had made it sound so difficult._

A note had also been included in the package explaining that further information would be provided when he was called for his first mission. Itachi hoped it was after the Chuunin exam. He was pretty sure it would be since he couldn't imagine Madara taking him away from his training.

Fugaku was already home by the time Itachi arrived. He had been teaching him Genjutsu. Training was conducted in the Uchiha compound to prevent the other team from spying on them. Not that it mattered much, Itachi figured they wouldn't understand what they were seeing even if they did somehow manage to show up. Most of what the father and son did was stand about ten feet apart and stare at each other with their Sharingan's. The actual battle was going on in their minds and couldn't be seen by anyone else.

Itachi enjoyed the training. It was hard, his father was an expert at crafting illusions. The boy was convinced that Fugaku was probably better at Genjutsu than at Taijutsu. The first two times he had been caught he had tried to escape. However, after training ended he had spent a lot of time thinking about the illusions and decided to try a different strategy.

Walking up to his father he faced him. Fugaku activated his Sharingan and quickly caught Itachi in another illusion. This time the boy found himself in their garden but it was deserted, run down and it was night-time. Zombies were wandering around the aimlessly. Fog swirled around his feet and the full moon was three times larger than usual and had fog and clouds attempting to obscure it. Instead of trying to break free Itachi walked up to the zombies and looked, touched, smelled and listened to them. He realized that whatever sense he used was accentuated by several times. If he sniffed them they stank. If he touched them he felt pain, if he looked at them their appearance became scarier and if he listened to them they were louder.

Looking at the abandoned garden Itachi wondered why his father chose to make it appear so. The plants were overgrown or dead. The ground was torn up and the beautiful pond his mother took such pride in maintaining was dry and the statuary cracked

Fugaku ended the Genjutsu. "Very good Itachi. You have figured out several key features of a good Genjutsu. The person you apply it to will be your biggest challenge. You must be able to look inside their hearts and view their fears, insecurities and dislikes as well as what pleases them. Using that information against an opponent can go a long ways.

"Also, the scene of the Genjutsu, while secondary, is still psychologically important. A zombie in a parade of happy villagers looks comedic. A zombie in a deserted run down village is scary.

"If you put yourself in the Genjutsu you must do so carefully. An exaggerated version of how your opponent envisions you is the best, then up that one more level to add a bit of surrealism. It throws them off, but it also will clue the smarter ones in on the fact that they are caught in a Genjutsu. So if you add yourself to the illusion be careful."

Itachi nodded his head, listening closely. It sounded like Genjutsu was kind of like playing Shogi or Go. It was a mental game of strategy. He had been using Genjutsu for several years, but not at this level.

Fugaku continued talking. "With the Sharingan we can gain much insight into an opponent. We can see a rapid heartbeat, sweat, irregular breathing. We can also see chakra as colors, as you already know. Using this we can easily deduce a persons chakra flow. Combining this knowledge can give you enough information to determine what kind of attack would be best.

"I have some scrolls in the library set aside for you to read. They discuss psychology as well as physical manifestations of fear. There are also some scrolls on Genjutsu application. Read them over the next two days and then we will have another training session. Also, come up with an appearance you can use for yourself in a Genjutsu. It may take a few tries to find a good one, but you need to start working on it now."

Genjutsu was sounding better and better as Itachi listened to his father. "So that is why you are so good at assassinations."

Fugaku chuckled, his eyes flashed menacingly. "I have never lost a target. And neither will you."

Itachi had a sudden feeling that he had underestimated his father. Could it be that Fugaku had never fought an all-out battle either? "Father?"

"Hmm?"

"Are the powers of the Sharingan untested?" Itachi's voice was serious.

"Have we tested our limits? No. That can only be mapped at the moment of one's death. The Sharingan is unbeatable. Even Obito, who was weak by Uchiha standards, easily made Chuunin at a young age and he didn't even have the Sharingan at the time. Such is the potential of the Uchiha.

"In fact, Kakashi, who has Obito's Sharingan, was nick-named the 'copy-ninja' because he has been able to use its basic function so successfully." Fugaku was smiling when he finished talking.

"It sounds like I should go spar with him." Itachi smiled back, wondering what a fight with Obito's eye would be like. Perhaps it would be a happy reminder of his long-dead cousin.

"Wait until after the exam. Kakashi is very popular and you are likely to attract visitors. You don't want to give away your trump card too soon." Fugaku decided he would love to see that fight as well. He had plans for Kakashi and finding out the teenager's exact strengths would be helpful. However, he doubted he would have time to watch. Well, there were others who could do that for him.

"It's just… I feel like no one is good enough to fight me." Itachi continued. He didn't like speaking about his feeling to his father.

"I gathered that from the other day when you came home from the second exam." Fugaku looked at Itachi, who was standing very still with no emotion or chakra emanating from his small form. He also noticed that there wasn't a speck of dirt on his clothes and his hands were clean even though he had been in woods all morning. He had another flashback to his father, standing over the body of his mother. That man had been spotless as well.

"There may be nothing you can do about that, Itachi. You are a genius of the Uchiha. That is undeniable. As such, there may be no one who can go up against you. As I said, only a death match can determine that. However, you are not to go looking for a battle to the death. It serves no purpose. The clan needs you alive, to take over from me someday. There is more to this than your own personal glory, something I'm sure you understand." However, in his mind Fugaku wasn't so sure Itachi understood. He saw the boy nod, silently accepting the lecture, but there was no emotion to tell him how the boy really felt.

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Over the next few weeks Itachi studied and honed his Genjutsu skills. He also sparred with various members of the clan to practice his copied techniques and to keep up on his Taijutsu. He had checked up on the Stone Genin as well as his teammates to observe their techniques and was surprised to learn that his first fight was against the weakest Stone ninja. The other boy on the team was ten times better. Guiltily, Itachi found himself hoping the boy won the necessary round against Yuri so that he could fight him later in the exam. He tried to justify it by telling himself that Yuri could still become a Chuunin even if she lost. However, if Yuri won that would mean she was better and he cheered up again. Either way, he decided, he would have a good match.

The week before the exam began a lot of people started to arrive in Konoha. By the end of the week every hotel room was full and several training areas outside of the Konoha gates had been turned into make-shift camp grounds. People and merchants were coming from several nations to view the first-ever multi-village Chuunin exam.

Merchants were assembling stalls to be used during the festival scheduled to start on the first day of competition and last for five days. The Academy was also closing for one day due to the large number of parents who were pulling their children out of classes to view the fights.

Itachi, and the other five Genin found moving around town nearly impossible. They were constantly stopped by "tourists" who wanted to talk to them or take pictures or even ask for autographs. Of course, in Itachi's case, he was a very cute ten-year-old boy with dark eyes and a pony-tail that stretched to the middle of his shoulder blades. Many older women were giving him hugs or pinching his cheeks. Of course he was too well mannered to refuse, having been taught to respect his elders and always listen to them. However, inside he was fuming and wishing he was older so he could escape all the "grandmothers".

His father just laughed at him when Itachi vented that evening at dinner. Curious and a little put-off over his father's attitude Itachi asked what was so funny.

"In another year or two you will become an attraction for every eleven to thirteen-year-old girl in the village. And it will continue. You inherited your mother's good looks, boy, no denying that." Itachi realized he should have known better than to mention it, and for some reason his mother was blushing and Sasuke was using the opportunity to steal broccoli off of his plate. All in all he couldn't wait for the exam to be over.

The rest of the week Itachi trained inside the Uchiha compound. Shisui offered to help him so he could also avoid the village. The tourists, who knew there were few Uchiha children, kept thinking he was Itachi and it was annoying. Especially since he was dressed as a policeman with a shirt that had a star superimposed with the Uchiha fan on the shoulder, a jounin vest and a cloth tied around his waist that had the same star and fan on it. Why would a Genin training to be in the Chuunin exams be running around doing police work? That was all Shisui wanted to know.

Shisui also had to admit to Itachi during a break that he was jealous. He wished he had been able to take the exam and seeing all the preparations was making it more difficult to tolerate the disappointment.

"But… I'm still going to go and watch you and I really want you to come out on top." He whispered under his breath, "And not just because it's what Fugaku wants. If you win, we are close enough in ability that I would know I also would have won."

Itachi had to smile at that. It was true, he and Shisui were so close they could be equals. He wondered why he had never noticed that before. True, he hadn't trained with his cousin for a few months. Both of them were kept busy. Shisui was training with his father and developing his "flicker" technique – a jutsu that allowed him to use teleportation to move quickly around an enemy. Combined with Genjutsu it was an amazingly powerful technique very similar to the one Madara used.

Shisui also had to work four hours a day as a policeman. Fugaku had wanted him to work longer, but the Hokage had pointed out that even though Genin worked long hours at a young age it was never consecutive and having a twelve-year-old work a regular job violated the child labor laws. Fugaku saw it as nothing more than another form of persecution – Konoha telling him how to run his clan. It didn't change Shisui's life much, no matter what anyone said. He still did his work and trained the rest of the day. It had been that way his entire life.

When they finished with their break they stood up to begin sparring again. Itachi felt he had made a vast improvement over the last month. He had learned all the scrolls his father assigned him, practiced all the new jutsu's he copied, and his Genjutsu was nothing short of, well, awesome, as far as the boy was concerned.

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The morning of the exam finally came and Itachi woke up in a good mood. He didn't know how many days it would take to get through all the fights. He hoped it would be over in one. There were six Genin and that meant five matches. With any luck it should take less than four hours to get through them all.

He had stopped at the temple the evening before and made an offering of incense and rice, then prayed for success. The elders had been there and they wished him luck, then reminded him of how important winning was. Thankfully his father hadn't mentioned it, but the looks he had been giving him spoke volumes. Itachi truly had no intention of loosing – if for no other reason than because he hated to loose.

A few short hours later Itachi was escorted to the coliseum by most of the Uchiha clan. Auntie was staying behind (she didn't like crowds) and offered to watch Sasuke so Mikoto could attend. Fugaku walked in front with Itachi behind him and then Mikoto. The rest of the Uchiha were arranged according to status. As they walked through the village the serious looking Uchihas were an intimidating sight to the tourists who had little to no exposure to ninja clans. The villagers, on the other hand, stepped back and waved to Itachi, wishing him luck. There was still a certain level of intimidation, but it wasn't uncomfortable.

The ANBU followed at a distance, a fact that was not lost on any of the clan members. Fugaku was annoyed, after all his son was carrying the whole village on his shoulders at the moment. Shouldn't that earn them all a little bit of trust?

After arriving at the coliseum Itachi separated from his clan and entered through the participant's door. An hour later the six Genin were standing in the middle of the large fight area staring up at a packed audience. Itachi quickly found his clan, they were seated in an area near the Hokage. The Hokage was separated from the crowd and seated on a balcony. Beside him were three other Kage's – Stone, Cloud, and Wind – as well as other dignitaries who were probably also leaders or representatives of other Hidden Villages.

"Smile for the crowd." A man was standing in front of them, he had introduced himself as Otoya and said he was the proctor for the third exam. Tall, with red hair and green eyes, Itachi had a sudden flashback to his first day at the Academy when he had met the Fourth's wife. He shook his head to clear it. He needed to focus on the present.

The Third Hokage finally stood up and motioned for everyone to be silent. Oddly enough it worked, and everyone sat in quiet anticipation.

"I, and the other Kages all welcome you to the first multi-national Genin exam. What we will see transpire over the next few hours are battles between the best the participating countries have to offer. The six participants you see in front of you have worked hard to get where they are and we must ask that, no matter the outcome, they all be treated with respect. They deserve it. The path they took to get to where they are now was long and hard and their futures are even harder.

"Now, cheer them on and enjoy yourselves! Otoya! You may begin." The Third sat back down, smiling.

Otoya stepped forward and held up his hand so everyone would notice him. Once he had the crowd's attention he spoke loudly. "The first battle will be Genya Watanabi and Itachi Uchiha!"

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Next week Itachi battles to reach the top.

Please review!

Updates on Friday's


	39. Chapter 39 Five Battles

In the last chapter Itachi trained in Genjutsu and spied on his opponents.

Thanks for all the reviews! Including the great people who remember to review every chapter (or close to that).

Disclaimer: Uchiha is owned by Kyuubi. Kyuubi is owned by Naruto. Naruto is owned by Kishimoto. Therefore Kishimoto owns Uchiha. Ha! Cringe at my circular logic and despair! xD

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Chapter 39 – Five Battles

The spectators cheered at the announcement that the first fight was beginning. Some of them had been in the stadium for a couple hours and were getting antsy. Otoya walked to the side of the stadium and leaned up against the wall, settling in for the show, but still alert to step in if things got out of hand.

When the six Genin had gathered thirty minutes earlier the rules were explained. Fights to the death were not allowed and the proctor had final say in whether a fight could continue or not. Anyone failing to abide by those rules, and about a dozen others, would be instantly disqualified.

Genya laughed at the short, ten-year-old standing in front of him. "I can't believe they have me fighting a little kid. Unbelievable. Ya know, kid, if you don't want to get hurt you can quit now before I punch your lights out."

Itachi stood staring at him, expressionless. He was really getting tired of people saying that to him. Activating his Sharingan he noted that despite Genya's bravado he was nervous and sweating lightly.

"Not backing down, huh? Okay, don't say I didn't warn you." Genya formed seals with his hands then yelled, "Douryuu Taiga no Jutsu!"

An eight foot wide river of mud appeared a couple feet in front of the Stone ninja and flowed quickly to where Itachi was standing. Caught in flow the boy was knocked down. Flailing his arms Itachi struggled to find something to hold on to. The flow was deep and his feet couldn't reach the bottom.

Laughing, Genya formed more hand signs, "Doro Kanko no Jutsu!" The mud instantly dried. Caught and unable to move Itachi cried out. The exhalation of breath caused the mud to contract around his body and he passed out from oxygen deprivation.

Genya walked up to the trapped boy and kicked him. The body disappeared. "A clone! But when?" Genya suddenly found himself flying fifteen feet across the field. Itachi had materialized behind him and kicked him in the rear end.

Itachi quickly formed seals, "Housenka no Jutsu!" Several bursts of flames escaped from his mouth and flew rapidly toward Genya, who was still sitting on the ground.

Reacting quickly, Genya also quickly formed seals then slammed his hands on the ground, "Doro Gaeshi no Jutsu!" A wall of mud appeared in front of him, blocking the fireballs. However, something was wrong. Genya looked around the wall and Itachi was no longer there.

"Doro Gaeshi no Jutsu!" Itachi copied the mud flow technique and Genya found himself flailing about in the sticky substance. Trying to lift his arms so he could form seals he heard Itachi yell again, "Doro Kako no Jutsu!" The mud dried and Genya was trapped up to his neck, unable to move.

Itachi walked over and tapped the boys head with his foot. Genya didn't disappear. He looked over at the proctor and Otoya walked over.

"I declare this match over. Itachi Uchiha is the winner." Otoya yelled so everyone could hear. The crowd roared their approval, making so much noise that Itachi had to resist the urge to cover his ears. Instead he walked back to the waiting area while Otoya released Genya from the trap.

Glancing up at the crowd Itachi picked out his father. Fugaku was watching, but showing no emotion. Well, the fight was short. Only ten minutes, and Genya had practically no advanced skills. He was caught way too easily. Not to mention the way he was making fun of him instead of sizing up his enemy. Very childish.

Itachi also saw that there were several ANBU watching the event as well. Some were standing around the Kage's and VIP's. Others were placed in the stands amongst the spectators. He wondered why there were so many, but decided that since the event was new and there were so many foreigners, maybe they were just being cautious. The hidden villages typically didn't get along very well and there had already been several instances of fights breaking out inside the village.

"Itachi! Congratulations!" Yuri and Sana rushed up to him and patted him on the back.

"Thanks." He smiled up at them. When all was said and done he did feel a little better, now that the first fight was out of the way. He hadn't even realized he was feeling wound-up.

Otoya's voice could be heard echoing through the stadium, "The next fight is between Youko Sugiyama of Iwa and Sana Nara of Konoha."

"Good luck!" Itachi and Yuri said at the same time, then smiled at each other. Sana took a deep breath then walked to the center of field where the proctor was waiting.

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Youko and Sana walked out to the middle of the stadium where the proctor was waiting. When they arrived he began the fight and returned to his position against the wall. Youko gave Sana the same warning Genya had given Itachi, causing Sana to give a short laugh. She had spied on Youko while she was training and found her abilities to be fairly basic. However, Sana knew better than to underestimate her opponent.

As Sana expected, Youko made the first move. "Douka Iwa Fubuko no Jutsu!" Rocks ripped out of the ground and flew through the air. Sana found herself being pelted with stones. She quickly did a substitution jutsu and reappeared near a cluster of trees at the other end of the field. Looking down at her body she saw that she had only taken a couple hits and neither were going to leave a mark.

Youko walked nearer to Sana then stopped. "I know about your shadow jutsu. You can only use it if I'm close to you. Since I'm a long range fighter that's not an issue!" She laughed and raised her hands to form another seal, then froze.

The Sana in the trees disappeared and the real Sana stood five feet behind her opponent, smirking. "You are correct about that. I did need to be closer to you. So here I am!" Sana realized that her Shadow techniques burned a lot of chakra. She couldn't afford to waste much. The winner of this fight was scheduled to fight Itachi in the second round. Sana realized she had won the fight and if she was going to stand any chance against her teammate she would need as much chakra as possible.

Sana laughed inwardly. She had no chance against Itachi. Her real strategy would be to have a good fight and show her talents to the Kage's so they would rate her favorably. If she lost and looked like an idiot in the process she would fail for sure. And her parents would be disappointed and angry. However, if she lost and showed intelligence, maturity and skill in her fighting style she would still make Chuunin.

"You've caught me. But what are you going to do now? You can't hurt me without hurting yourself." Youko gloated. She had seen the Kage Mane no Jutsu, the shadow imitation technique, and knew that whatever Sana did, Youko would have to mimic. Therefore, Youko reasoned, in order to knock her out Sana would have to knock herself out.

Sana smiled. "Intelligence gathering is an art, that is true. And art is something that needs to be refined and built upon as a person progresses through life."

"What?" Youko was lost. Why was this girl suddenly talking about art?

Sana suddenly started running toward the trees. Youko was forced to run as well, eyes widening in shock as she realized where they were heading. A few seconds later there was an audible "crack" as Youko's head hit a tree, instantly knocking her out. Sana stopped running five feet away and looked at the unconscious girl.

Otoya walked over and looked at Youko. "This fight is over. The winner is Sana Nara!" Again the crowd yelled and clapped their hands loudly. Sana responded by waving one hand in the air, then blew some kisses at them for good measure.

The proctor looked at her and laughed. He hadn't expected that from a member of usually laid back and complacent Nara clan.

Itachi greeted his teammate with a big smile. This meant he would be facing Sana in his next fight. She was much better than that Youko girl and while he knew he could still beat her easily, it would be a much more interesting fight. However, he also noticed that Sana had failed to use any advanced abilities. Obviously she was saving her chakra. That was a very good move, and showed the usual Nara ability of "strategic planning".

"Wow, that only took fifteen minutes?" Sana said, glancing at the clock. Only a hour had gone by since the battle first started. "This is going to be a short day, I guess. I was afraid it would last a couple days. The breaks between the fights are taking longer than the fights themselves."

"Well, we still have several fights left." Yuri said, "But I hope it does end today."

Another fifteen minutes passed and Otoya called out to the crowd again, "The next fight is Yuri of Konoha and Tetsuro Hida of Iwa!"

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Yuri faced Tetsuro and smiled. This was her only fight of the day. Because there was an odd number of fights in the first round, the winner of this fight would have no one to fight in the second round, therefore he or she would fight the winner of second round in the third round. She thought it was kind of unfair. It meant that Itachi (who was sure to win the second round) would be entering his third fight when his opponent would only be entering his second fight. Luckily Itachi was resourceful.

Tetsuro was the most skilled of the Iwa ninja's and as such Yuri already knew she wouldn't win against him. He was close to Itachi's level. She had seen him using some high level jutsu's when she spied on him. However, she also knew that one of the reasons she would loose was that she was not allowed to kill him. Her Kekkei Genkai was an assassination and spying technique. It wasn't designed for "knock-outs". She relied on Itachi and Sana for that.

'Well, if I can't win I can at least show the Kage's what I can do. They should be able to pick out the points where I could have made a kill and hopefully deduce my performance from that.' She thought as she watched Tetsuro stand motionless, watching her.

"Nekko Bunshin no Jutsu!" Roots shot up from the ground to form clones, surrounding Tetsuro. Yuri hid in the ground.

"Ha! You realize I am the number one Genin in Iwa. There is no way you can beat me. I not a pushover like my team members." Tetsuro created hand signs as he spoke then yelled "Sochuu Eigyou no Jutsu!" and earth clones appears amongst the root clones. Tetsuro also hid underground.

The clones started to fight each other, but as soon as one was destroyed a new one took its place. The clone fight was an impasse. Since it was impossible to win Tetsuro quickly got rid of them, "Douka Iwa Fubuko no Jutsu!" Rocks pulled themselves up out of the ground and fell over the clones. They all disappeared and the jutsu prevented new ones from reappearing.

Tetsuro then used a jutsu to turn the ground to mud. As he expected Yuri popped up, unable to be underground if there was a lot of water. She coughed once then spoke, "Nekko Shibarikomu no Jutsu." A root snaked up out of the ground and wrapped around Tetsuro's foot, pulling him into the ground up to his neck. However, sensing something wasn't right she yelled "Nekko no Tate!" and several roots pulled out of the ground to form a shield in front of her just as a mudflow was about to reach her. It flowed off on either side of the wall.

The Iwa nin had used a substitution jutsu to escape the root bind jutsu. He smirked as he saw the mud form a circle around his opponent. He then formed the hand seals again and solidified the mud. Only this time he made the mudflow twenty feet deep and when it solidified…

Yuri tried to call the roots but they wouldn't come. She looked at the dried mud. "So, you cut the roots off from the trees and plants so I can't call them." She spoke quietly. The boy was smart enough to know or guess that few roots traveled more than a few feet under ground.

The Kunoichi jumped out of the ring as she threw two shuriken at Tetsuro. The boy jumped away from the shuriken, but as he left the earth a root reached up and grabbed his ankle. Looking around he stared at a nearby tree in disbelief.

When Yuri had jumped out of the circle she used the shuriken as a distraction to create a root clone in the tree, then used the clone to send a jutsu into the earth to grab Tetsuro's ankle. Tetsuro was surprised. The girl was able to use clones to mold chakra even when she couldn't. How was that possible?

Falling forward, Tetsuro felt his shin bone crack and winced in pain. Yuri dispelled the clone and was about to start forming another hand sign when suddenly Tetsuro put one hand up, palm open and sideways to his face, then yelled "Katsu!"

Four different parts of the field exploded, including where Yuri was standing. Smoke and debris hovered in the air for a few short minutes then settled down. A mound of dirt covered the area where Tetsuro had been laying on the ground. It fell apart quickly, revealing the boy, who was now sitting up. Yuri, on the other hand, was unconscious and her leg was bleeding.

Otoya ran over and looked at the girl, then waved some medics over who quickly picked her up and put her on a stretcher. "The winner of this match is Tetsuro Hida." The crowd was even noisier than they had been during the first two fights. This was the first fight of the day to show advanced abilities and they were eating it up.

Tetsuro started walking away, but Otoya stopped him. "Are there any more explosives?"

"No. I blew them all up at once so they wouldn't remain. I remember the rules and I don't want to be disqualified." Tetsuro spoke arrogantly, like he considered the question and the questioner beneath him.

"You're limping, make sure you follow those guys to the infirmary. You probably cracked a bone or something when that root grabbed you."

"I was planning on it." Tetsuro limped off the field, making sure he didn't get too close to the medics carrying his unconscious opponent.

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Itachi and Sana made their way to the infirmary, worried about Yuri. They were even more worried when they saw her uncle was already there. He was a tall, thin man who wore his green hair in a crew cut and always wore a blank expression. His clothes consisted of the usual brown yukata and black pants that were wrapped at the bottom with white bandages. They knew the man had a temper and didn't want to witness him yelling at Yuri in front of them and the Iwa team who were sitting and lying nearby.

"She has a broken arm, two breaks in her leg and a concussion. But none of them will keep her out for long. The medic is taking care of Tetsuro first since he has to fight again. She's unconscious so she's not feeling any pain right now." Uncle spoke in an even voice that almost sounded kind for once. He saw the worried faces on Itachi and Yuri and smiled, something the two children had never seen him do before.

"It was a good fight. I saw three instances where she could have made a clean kill without the boy even realizing it. I am proud of her."

Itachi and Sana were pleasantly surprised by his words. He wasn't the kind of person to compliment anyone. They both bowed formally to the man, without speaking. They knew he didn't expect an answer.

"When does the next fight start, Itachi?" Uncle asked in his usual monotone.

"In two hours. They are giving the audience and the participant's time to relax." Itachi spoke in a polite tone. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Tetsuro staring at him. It was clear the boy wanted to say something to him, probably impolite, but he wasn't going to speak up in front of Yuri's serious looking Uncle. Especially since he had no doubt heard that she could have killed him unknowingly. Itachi smirked inwardly. That had to be a blow to guy's ego. Knowing that he won only because his opponent was an assassin and assassinations weren't allowed in the competition.

"Well, Itachi, they were setting up a buffet, let's go up and get some fruit or something. You and I are going next, after all." Sana smiled and she and Itachi left the Infirmary. Tetsuro followed them, at a distance. His break had been a hairline fracture. The medic healed it then wrapped it tightly in bandages so he was no longer limping or in pain.

When Itachi reached the waiting area he saw that a light buffet was set up on one table. Fruit, kabobs, some sauces and cookies were set out. He picked out a plate then grabbed some peach slices, watermelon, grapes and a couple chicken kabobs and satay (peanut) sauce as well as several cookies. A cup of green tea was handed to him and he sat down on the floor next to the balcony rail. Looking up he could see his parents and the rest of the clan. Most were also eating food purchased from vendors who were making their way through the crowds.

"Doesn't sitting and staring at your parents make things worse?" Sana asked. She was sitting with her back to the balcony, pointedly not looking at the crowd.

"What are you talking about? You were the one out their blowing kisses." Tetsuro answered sarcastically.

Sana laughed. "Yeah, just thought if I went with it maybe some of the stress would go away."

"Did it?" Tetsuro asked.

"No." Sana laughed again, and looked at Itachi. He was listening, but still staring at the crowd. She shook her head.

"Is your family here?" She asked the Iwa nin.

"My older brother came yesterday and will leave tonight. He's…not welcome here. They only let him come for the competition." Tetsuro's tone changed, but Sana couldn't tell if he was happy his brother came or sad because someone else didn't.

"Well, that was nice of them. I'm glad they made an exception for you. It means a lot to have the people you care about with you at important times in your life." Sana said happily.

"Yeah. I was… not expecting him to come." Tetsuro looked over at Itachi. "He's in a clan?"

"Uchiha. You never heard of them?"

"Oh. Yeah." Tetsuro shook his head as if he said something stupid. "Glad I'm not. Stress is bad enough, but having a couple hundred people riding your back…I can't imagine it."

"Humph. Tell me about it." Sana had to agree. Her clan was small, only a few people, and it wasn't even an organized clan like Uchiha or Hyuuga. It was just a family with a few members. However, there was still pressure to learn and master the family jutsus, and to achieve the expectations of her parents, uncles, aunts and cousins.

The three Genin ate the rest of their lunch in semi-companionable silence. Itachi continued to stare at his family. Truthfully, he didn't know why. He knew Sana was right and watching them was probably making him feel more stressed, but he couldn't look away. He finally looked up at the VIP balcony. The Kage's and dignitaries were also eating, but they had a table setup and the meal was catered instead of vendor provided. He could see that they were talking and occasionally laughing. Itachi wondered what it would be like when his father took out the elders and Sarutobi. Would he be sitting in that box with the other dignitaries? Fugaku was very good at politics, from what Itachi could see. He knew what to say and when to say it, even if he didn't mean a word of it.

Itachi didn't like to socialize much. He suddenly wondered how he would handle such a situation. If he was to inherit the position from his father, how would that work? He tried to imagine himself up in that balcony, talking to the other Kages, but all he could see was an image of himself as an adult, bored and staring off into space while those around him talked and laughed.

Sighing, Itachi adjusted himself so he was sitting in the sun and meditated until it was ready for the next match. Sana and Tetsuro took his lead and did the same thing.

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"The second round will have only one match," Otoya was standing in the middle of stadium addressing the crowd, "as you can see from the charts on your programs. The next fight will be Itachi Uchiha of Konoha and Sana Nara of Konoha."

Itachi and Sana were already in the middle of the field, having followed Otoya out. They looked at each other with blank expressions as they stood about twenty feet apart. Itachi had already realized that Sana knew she could never beat him. However, he also knew she had not used any advanced techniques in her first fight. It had been all strategy. That meant she had saved her chakra and new abilities for her fight against him.

When Itachi had spied on Sana he saw her and her cousin in the Nara family forest practicing chakra control. That had been the teenagers biggest shortfall. She could use the family jutsus but she had trouble fine-tuning them. She had gotten as far as she did mainly because of her strategic thinking and even when used in the basic form the shadow techniques were still very powerful.

Itachi started the fight, "Housenka no Jutsu!" he sent several fireballs toward Sana.

Sana quickly performed some hand seals and yelled, "Kage Nui!" Her shadow lengthened then split into several tendrils. Using her hands, which were still folded in a seal in front of her face she sent the tendrils up into the air and, using just the right amount of chakra, hit them back at Itachi.

Itachi smiled at his teammates improved abilities and quickly made some hand signs of his own and hit his palms against the ground, "Doro Gaeshi no Jutsu!" A wall of mud rose into the air in front of him, absorbing the fire balls. He had copied the jutsu from the Iwa ninja and wondered what the boy was thinking as he watched Itachi using it.

The mud wall cast a long shadow over Itachi and Sana took advantage of it. "Kage Kubi Shibari no Jutsu!" The shadow neck bind technique was a shadow designed to wrap around body parts. She sent it forward, using the wall's shadow to extend her own. The shadow wrapped around Itachi's middle, lifted him up and threw him against the mud wall.

Itachi quickly did a replacement jutsu and appeared behind Sana. He kicked Sana before she could turn around, but his foot hit empty air as Sana performed her own replacement jutsu. Itachi looked up and saw the girl standing on top of the mud wall.

Looking down at her opponent, the first thing Sana noticed was that Itachi was now on the "sun" side of the wall and she couldn't send her shadow to him. She also noticed that the field was still torn up from the earlier fights. Including several holes.

Experimenting Sana sent her shadow through a hole on the shady side of the wall and extended it through the hole. She saw a small dark spot rise up out of a hole three feet behind Itachi. Forming signs again she sent the shadow neck bind technique forward to grab Itachi and quickly pulled him into the hole.

As Itachi disappeared from view he yelled "Dochuu Eigyo no Jutsu!" Multiple earth clones appeared around where he had been standing. Quickly he performed a transportation jutsu to escape the shadow bind and reappeared amongst the clones. He then dispelled the mud wall he had created earlier.

Sana jumped to the ground as the wall fell back to the earth in a cascade of mud. "Kage Nui no Jutsu!" She split her shadow up into tendrils again and whipped them around, destroying the clones. However, whenever she destroyed a clone a new one would automatically appear to replace it. She swung the tendrils through the group of clones three times with the same results. Looking closely she noticed that there was one clone that never disappeared. Staring closely at it she decided it was the real Itachi.

The clones all disappeared and Itachi fell to his knees on the ground. He looked exhausted for some reason. Was he sick again? Or perhaps he was having mental problems? She didn't wait to find out. Sending her shadow forward she wrapped it around his middle and squeezed.

"Ahhh!" Sana yelled in pain and collapsed onto her hands and knees, trying to catch her breath. Looking up she saw Itachi standing where he had been before he fell. Closing her eyes she tried to take a deep breath, but the pain prevented it. "Genjutsu." She gasped.

"Yes." Itachi said calmly.

Sana sat down and felt her side. Something poked her and she looked. Her rib was broken and sticking out through her skin and it had even cut though her shirt. Blood was dripping down her side. 'I bet I have a punctured lung as well.' Sana said to herself. As she tried to breath she started to see black spots form in front of her eyes.

"Withdraw." Sana gasped as she raised her hand halfway into the air.

The proctor and medics were already running across the field when she raised her hand. They quickly loaded her on a stretcher and ran off the field.

"The winner of the Second round match is Itachi Uchiha. The last match will be in thirty minutes so don't wander off." Otoya looked at Itachi. The boy was standing, staring at the blood on the ground. His eyes were wide and his fists were clenched, but there was no expression on his face to betray what he was feeling. The crowd, as usual, was boisterously yelling their approval of the fight.

"Are you okay, Itachi?" Otoya finally asked.

"Huh?" Itachi turned and looked up at him. "Yeah. I was just thinking about how powerful Genjutsu is. It's not something to be used without consideration. She could have been injured much worse than she was."

Otoya smiled and the two walked back to the waiting room. Mistakes were made on missions, and people who shouldn't die did die. It was a fact, albeit a shameful one. He was impressed that Itachi had figured it out. Some, in their arrogance, never did.

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Sana laid flat and copied the breathing method the medic had instructed her to use while he prepared to heal her rib. First, though, he had to stop the bleeding. She had already lost too much blood and had chewed a blood pill a couple minutes earlier. As her rib was put back in place she felt intense pain, then dull throb as the medic forced his chakra into her side. The hole in her lung would be taken care of later. It was uncomfortable and painful, but the broken rib and blood loss was more important.

Yuri looked at her teammate in concern, but didn't speak until the medic's backed off. She could see the girl was still having trouble breathing.

The medic came back with an oxygen tank and a mask, setting them on the bed. "Just in case. We want your blood count to get back to normal. In an hour we'll fix your lung. Just relax for now. If you start having trouble breathing try the breathing method I taught you, or put on the oxygen mask."

Sana nodded in understanding, but didn't feel like talking. She had seen Itachi's face when the Genjutsu had ended. It had been expressionless as usual, but his eyes seemed to have something else in them. It looked like he was surprised… like he didn't expect her to get hurt… or something. She had been put under Genjutsu by both Itachi and Shisui for training purposes but the application had never been that smooth. She had truly been unable to tell the difference between reality and illusion. Instead of wrapping the shadow around Itachi she had wrapped it around herself. If she had been out on a mission she would have been killed.

"Sana! Relax!" The medic strapped the mask over her face as she started hyperventilating.

"Should we give her a tranquilizer?" A second medic asked.

Sana shook her head. She didn't want to miss the last fight.

"Relax, then Sana. It's okay. Take a deep breath and hold it, then let it go." The first medic spoke soothingly and Sana's breathing returned to normal.

Yuri looked at her Uncle, who was still sitting next to her. He had noticed the Genjutsu, even though they had been watching the match on a TV the medics hooked up during the lunch break. He had also said that given Fugaku's Genjutsu ability it was very likely that Itachi, who was a genius, would be ten times better than his father. However it was his last statement that sent chills through Yuri, and the two Iwa Genin where also watching the match.

"It's likely the boy does not know his limits and will kill before he masters them. It is unfortunate, but unavoidable."

Uncle didn't criticize Sana performance, and when her parents came down to see here a few minutes later he even spoke with them for a couple minutes.

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The last match was about to start. Itachi and Tetsuro were standing, staring at each other. Itachi was a little nervous. If he lost this match his clan… his father would probably beat him to a pulp. Then get mad. This time he didn't look up into the stadium.

"The last match! This is it folks! Remember though, that Chuunin will not be determined by winning or loosing, but how well one fights. Therefore, the winner of the final battle is not guaranteed a Chuunin rank. However, he will have bragging rights, so it means something! Now! We have Tetsuro Hida of Iwa and Itachi Uchiha of Konoha! Let the battle begin!" Otoya did a transportation jutsu to move to the side of the stadium. This time instead of relaxing against the wall he stood at alert. He decided he wanted to be able to move quickly if the fight got too close.

The two boys looked at each other, waiting for the other to make the first move. Tetsuro noticed that clouds were coming in, blocking the sky. Rain fell and he shivered. He had heard that Konoha got more rain than Iwa, after all that's why there were so many green trees, however the squall that came up was fast. He looked back up at Itachi and saw that he was no longer in front of him.

Tetsuro looked around then up at the crowd. They weren't moving, of course the spectator area was covered so they wouldn't get wet anyway. Looking up he stepped back in shock. Itachi was hovering in the air and the "rain" was coming out of his palms – like a sprinkler.

Pain shot through Tetsuro's body and he looked at his arm. The rain drops were making his skin turn red, blood started to seep up through small holes. He quickly realized that the rain was actually acid. The skin on his arm started to peel off. Large flakes fell on the ground. A few seconds later larger chunks of flesh started to fall off as well.

Raising his hands to form a hand sign, he screamed when he saw his hands were skeletal. No flesh, muscle or anything else remained on them. He couldn't move them well enough to form signs. He started to brush at his skin, trying to get the acid off.

Looking up at Itachi again he saw the boy disappear slowly and turn into a flock of ravens. The ravens flew down and started to peck at the flesh on the ground. Tetsuro panicked and kicked at the birds, then started picking up the flesh and putting it back over his skeleton.

"Why am I still alive!" He screamed. Then stood motionless, reason finally kicking in. He raised his hands up and, not looking at them, yelled "Kai!"

The Genjutsu broke and Itachi was standing in the same place he had been only moments before. Tetsuro looked down at his body and saw multiple scratch marks and bleeding. It was all superficial but it looked awful. The boy also realized that he had probably been jumping around like an idiot in front of a packed stadium.

"You bastard!" He yelled at Itachi.

Itachi smirked. Tetsuro was very angry, and angry people made mistakes.

However, Tetsuro quickly brought himself back under control. "Doryuu Taiga no Jutsu!" A mud flow appeared in front of him and he yelled "Doryuudan no Jutsu!" A dragon head formed out of the mud and opened its mouth, shooting flames at Itachi.

"Kage Nui no Jutsu!" Itachi had copied Sana's technique – it was jutsu based instead of Kekkei Genkai – and his shadow broke off into tendrils. He sent them forward and knocked the flames back to his opponent.

Tetsuro jumped aside to avoid them and they hit the wall of the stadium, causing ten foot cracks to appear. 'That boy is capable of copying jutsu's after seeing them only once. Damn. I though it was because he had been spying on everyone.' Tetsuro's thoughts were speeding at a hundred miles a second as he considered several different strategies.

Itachi copied the mud dragon jutsus and sent more fireballs at Tetsuro. Instead of avoiding him Tetsuro broght his hands up and quickly formed more seals, "Retsudo Tenshou no Jutsu!" Itachi copied the move at exactly the same time and Tetsuro's eyes opened wide in surprise.

The whirlwind that was created by the combined jutsus was incredibly powerful. Dirt and rocks were pulled from the ground and swirled around in a maelstrom of intense fury. Both participants were blocked from view. The crowd gasped and some stood up, covering their faces and trying to see into the tornado of rock and dirt.

It took almost five minutes for the jutsu to wear off. As the last of the dust fell to the ground Tetsuro was unconscious and Itachi was no where to be seen. Two more minutes passed and the ground moved again.

Itachi poked his head above ground, looking around at the devastation. A Fuuma shurikan – an oversized shuriken about three feet wide – shot forward and decapitated the boy. However, as the crowd gasped again a log fell to the ground instead of a head. The unconscious Tetsuro turned into a large rock.

Tetsuro quickly located Itachi and did a transportation jutsu to appear behind him. He jumped forward and kicked him, but Itachi blocked the kick and grabbed Tetsuro's arm, throwing him to the grown. Lifting his foot he kicked Tetsuro, but missed when the boy suddenly jumped to his feet.

Pulling a kunai Tetsuro jumped forward and swiped at Itachi. Itachi reached out as his arm pass by and grabbed the boy's wrist. Twisting Tetsuro's arm around his he kicked the back of the boy's legs forcing Tetsuro to fall on his face. Itachi quickly fell on top of him and hit Tetsuro on the back of the neck, knocking him unconscious.

Standing up, Itachi smiled at Otoya. Otoya walked over to the boys and checked Tetsuro. The boy was definitely unconscious. "The winner of the last fight, and overall winner of the third stage of the Chuunin exams is Itachi Uchiha of Konoha!"

The roar that resounded throughout the stadium was heard a mile away (or so they say). Itachi actually did put his hands over his ears for a minute until it died down a little bit. Or he got used to it, he was never quite sure of which one it was.

Looking up he saw his clan and was surprised to see his father clapping and smiling. His mother was also clapping and cheering. Other clan members were jumping up and down waving their arms over their heads. He saw Shisui, Aya and Sheeta standing on their seats and cheering. He could hardly wait to tell Sasuke. Although, he realized, the boy probably wouldn't understand yet.

The yelling and celebrating went on for ten minutes. Otoya put a hand on Itachi's shoulder to keep him from leaving, telling him that everyone wanted to see their champion. Finally the noise died down enough that the Third Hokage was able to interrupt and say a few words.

"Congratulations Itachi, of the Uchiha Clan. You have done well, and impressed everyone with your abilities. Also, the other participants have also impressed and we are glad they came. This was a very enjoyable day and we, the Kages and village representatives must call the whole thing a success. Meaning you will be seeing more Chuunin exams, every six months from here on out. Now everyone! Go out and enjoy the festival! The Chuunin results will be announced on the last day of the festival! Not to piss you off, but because we have a lot of discussion pertaining to the results. Now go celebrate!" The Hokage sat down and, catching Itachi's eye, smiled at him and nodded once. Itachi returned the smile. He understood. It was a success because of the sacrifice he made in the forest of death. Now that he saw the results he understood what Sarutobi was getting at.

"You can go back into the stadium now, Itachi." Otoya spoke into Itachi's ear so he would be heard over the yelling. Itachi nodded and walked off.

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Itachi's first stop was to see his two teammates. Yuri was getting ready to leave and Sana was being prepared to be transferred to the hospital.

"They said it was only overnight." Sana said when she saw Itachi frown. "And don't you dare apologize. It was fight and you won. I have no regrets."

Itachi smiled again. "Genjutsu is very powerful. I have a lot more training to do."

"And I'll help." Sana said firmly. She really wanted to learn more about how to recognize and dispel a Genjutsu.

"Me too." Yuri said in the same tone of voice.

"Thanks. But I think we'll wait until you're both healed fully. And, it seems like I'm supposed to do something…Oh! I have to go meet my parents. They're probably waiting for me." Itachi gave a short laugh and raced out of the room.

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The celebration lasted hours into the night. Most of the clan went to the festival and, even though they were still being followed by ANBU, managed to forget their problems for a few hours. Itachi pulled Sasuke around with him for a while, winning him a goldfish, buying him candy, and setting him on a merry-go-round with shiny white horses decorated with carved bridles and saddles in bright colors. The young boy was excited, but by 7pm was asleep on his brother's shoulder. Itachi walked back to the compound and gave his little brother back to Auntie then returned to the Festival.

Shisui, Aya and Sheeta were waiting for him at a Yakisoba stand. Shisui was probably the most excited. He considered a win for Itachi to be a win for himself. Itachi knew that was true. He wondered how different the battles would have been if Shisui were still a Genin and Yota were still alive.

Fugaku had to go on patrol when the festival started so he was walking around "keeping the peace". For the most part people were behaving themselves. A few fights always broke out, it was a ninja village after all, but on the whole there was less to do that night than usual.

The clan chief had been very pleased when his son won the exam fights. Even though he was sure there was no way the boy could loose he had to admit that arrogance was a good way to loose a fight, no matter what level your skill was. Now he was waiting for the end of the festival. He was sure Itachi would make Chuunin, but until he knew for sure he would worry about it. And so would Itachi.

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The end of the festival finally came. Tetsuro was the only Iwa nin left in town, along with his sensei. The others had left. However, a lot of the spectators who had come for the exams stayed throughout the whole festival.

Itachi met up with Yuri and Sana, both of whom were healed enough to be out. Tetsuro had also joined them for dinner. Well, actually he showed up and sat down at their table and didn't pick a fight. The three Konoha nin's considered that to be civil and let him stay. After all, they had no personal gripes with him.

So it was the four of them who showed up at the presentation area. Taking front row seats they waited, silent and anxious, for the Hokage to arrive and announce the results.

Sana put her hands over her stomach and breathed deeply.

"Are you okay? Is your lung okay?" Yuri asked, worried.

"Oh! Yeah. It's just… waiting for this is worse than waiting for someone to attack. I have butterflies the size of elephants growing in my stomach." Sana laughed nervously. The other's had to agree with her.

Slowly the area started to fill with people. Itachi saw his father and mother walk over and sit in the row behind him. Fugaku patted Itachi on the shoulder once then sat back in his chair. Yuri's uncle was standing in the back away from the chairs. He didn't like being around people and sitting in the audience was too much for him. Sana's parents were also sitting in the back. They liked to keep a low profile and fighting crowds was…troublesome.

Finally the Hokage appeared. The audience was now full and many people were standing around. "Thank-you all for coming. I must repeat myself in saying that the first multi-village Chuunin exam was a resounding success. Helped, in part of course, by the participants. The final selection was of such high quality that the committee felt no regrets when they finally came to a decision. So, without boring you further I will now name the newest Chuunin." The Hokage paused and Itachi saw Sana crossing her fingers to wish for luck.

The Hokage's voice was louder than before. "Tetsuro Hida. Yuri. Sana Nara. Itachi Uchiha." He paused again. "That is all. We are glad you came and we hope to see you again in six months for the next exam."

The assembled crowd cheered the new Chuunin and Sana jumped up and down in excitement.

"Are you sure you're a Nara?" Yuri asked her, laughing at her friends antics.

"My parents wonder the same thing sometimes. I'm going to go see them. Congrats everyone!" Sana ran off into the crowd.

Tetsuro congratulated them, then said he was going to head out that evening. He wasn't supposed to have stayed so long, but he didn't want to wait for the results. His sensei was waiting for him at the front gate.

Yuri wandered off to find her uncle and Itachi stood with his parents. Fugaku was very pleased. "You are my son, Itachi. I am proud of you."

Mikoto couldn't resist. She bent down and gave Itachi a hug, then kissed him on the cheek. Itachi blushed. "Not in front of everyone, mother."

"You are such a good son, Itachi." Mikoto gave him another hug. "Now let's go home and tell everyone. They are waiting on pins and needles to hear the news."

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A long chapter… but I thought you might like it if the whole thing was kept together instead of split up.

I hope it wasn't too OOC, but really, the clan had been so wound up by Fugaku's insistence that Itachi win that the celebrating seemed inevitable.

Oh, and about Akatsuki. Canon-wise we have no way of knowing if Fugaku knew if Itachi was in that organization or not. Originally, before Itachi's past was revealed I was going to have Akatsuki mess with his mind. Now that the job is on Danzou, I'm going to use Itachi's time in Akatsuki as a way for Fugaku to gather information about Madara. Remember, Fugaku wants Madara dead because he doesn't want him interfering in Uchiha affairs. However, how cooperative is Itachi going to be about passing information on to his father? You'll have to read to find out… xD

Please review

Updates on Fridays


	40. Chapter 40 The Akatsuki

Last week, Itachi won the Chuunin exams and moved up in rank.

Thanks for all the reviews! I look forward to seeing more XD

Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns everything! The entire universe! Even a few alternate universes as well! And dimensions – he owns all the dimensions!

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Chapter 40 – The Akatsuki

The dark woods sat motionless in the windless night. As the full moon floated from one horizon to the other, it cast its white light over the darkened ground. Shadows lengthened and drifted as time passed. Lying on the ground, intermingled with the shadows was a man, his face held tight in his hands, as if in pain.

The chastising voices echoed throughout his head. Loud, screaming, they spoke of betrayal and of murder. Tonight he could not silence them. For hours they had ranted and for hours he had laid on the ground trying not to listen. He felt no remorse, no guilt, and no reason to remember. But the voices thought otherwise.

His brother's voice was the loudest. Perhaps because he had taken his eyes he had also taken part of his consciousness. Chakra was an interesting field of study for those patient enough to do so, but no one understood it completely. The Chakra of the Uchiha was even more unusual. By now, Madara understood that well. Perhaps he even knew more than anyone else alive. After all, he had studied it for a very, very long time.

The voices always came. He couldn't make them not come and he never knew when it would happen. Today, they had come moments after he had heard the Hokage announce Itachi's advancement to Chuunin. Disguising himself in a shape-shifting technique no one saw or sensed him, least of all the Uchiha standing only a few feet from him.

Dawn came early to the forest a couple hours after the moon had set. Finally able to suppress the voices Madara sighed in relief and sat up. He would contact Itachi in a few hours, then head to Mist village. He had business there.

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Sasuke sat quietly in the grass in the backyard reading a book his mother had given him. It was a picture book, for the most part, but there were a few easy kanji sentences that the young boy was determined to learn. After all, his brother had learned it so he could too. He had awoken an hour earlier expecting to find his mother and father in the kitchen, but they were still in bed and Itachi wasn't home. Not really hungry he decided to read his new book and wandered outside.

The four-year-old didn't quite know what was going on. The previous evening the whole clan had gathered at the lake to congratulate Itachi. There had been a lot of noise and some of them had even been acting funny, swaying and talking weird. His mother had said they were "drunk".

Itachi had told him that he was a Chuunin and that's why they were celebrating. That didn't really mean anything to Sasuke, but he was still happy. After all, everyone else was happy so why shouldn't he be as well?

"Sasuke!" The boy heard his mother's voice coming from the other side of the house. Footsteps followed and a moment later she walked into the backyard. "There you are! I didn't know where you were. Sitting here so quietly."

Sasuke looked up and smiled. "I was studying! I'm going to the Academy soon, you said so."

Mikoto gave a short laugh. It really was hard to believe her youngest son would be five in only a few short weeks. She kept having to remind herself that time really did pass and her boys were getting older. Itachi was out of her hands, passed into the clutches of adulthood way too soon for her liking. And now Sasuke was eager to follow in his brothers footsteps.

Frowning, Mikoto looked down at the smiling boy. If only he could stay like this forever, but she knew that the life of a shinobi would remove his innocent smile and replace it frowns and tears. She also worried about Madara coming to take her boy away from her. She knew it would happen one day, and she firmly believed that when Sasuke learned the truth of his parentage he would be angered and willing to leave. How could he not? At fifteen he would learn that his life was a lie, and how could that not make one bitter? She wondered how many more lies would pile up in the meantime.

"Let's go get some breakfast, sweetie." Mikoto took her son's hand and lead him back in the house.

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"Itachi, it is important that you not speak my name to anyone in Akatsuki." Madara was reclining against a tree, letting the late morning sun shine on him.

"Ok…but why?" Itachi asked hesitantly. If this organization was Madara's why would he not want its members to know?

"Only a few of them know about me. The rest of the members know nothing. Including your partner."

"Who will that be? That boy from Stone you told us about years ago?" Itachi wasn't sure he liked the idea of the odd boy with the explosives being partnered with him, though he really had no specific reason why.

Madara laughed. The boy was very clever. "No. Kisame Hoshigaki will be your partner. He works well with children, respects their abilities without being patronizing. And he and you got along pretty good on your mission through Mist."

Itachi sighed. Kisame was okay, he figured.

"What's wrong?" Madara looked closely at Itachi. He was standing, face down, slightly slouched, with his hands in his pockets. His hair, which was normally tied back was loose and falling over his face. There were dark circles under his eyes. "If you were five years older I would think you had a hangover."

"Tired. We celebrated all night, I haven't gone to bed yet." A couple Uchiha clansmen who were in their early twenties had offered to teach Itachi and Shisui how to play poker and the four of them had been playing until a couple hours ago. He had found it an interesting game. Unlike Shoji or Go, where each player started out on equal footing, Poker provided each player with a different hand and no knowledge of what the other players were holding. It was very challenging. Not to mention addictive. And, to tell the truth, Itachi found the concept of Poker closer to a ninja battle and Shoji or Go to be closer to a samurai battle.

"Hmm. Well, Chuunin is a respectable rank. I watched the fights. Nothing to brag about but I liked the way you started to take out the others teams in the Forest of Death. Too bad the Hokage interfered."

"Yeah. Well, it wasn't too bad. I learned a lot of psychology in the last month and my Genjutsu has improved because of it."

"I saw the Genjutsu you cast in the last fight. Now that was dramatic. The crows flying down to eat the boys flesh was very original." Madara smirked.

Itachi blinked a couple times in shock. "You… could see my Genjutsu? Could…could… anyone else see it?" He thought it wasn't possible to see a Genjutsu unless it was cast on you.

"Yes, Itachi, I can see another person's Genjutsu. It is an uncommon skill I have learned throughout the years. Quite useful, I might add. Or at the very least, entertaining."

"Hn." Itachi responded with a little bit of amazement. He wondered why he had never noticed that before. Madara had been teaching him Genjutsu for years. If he was able to keep that a secret for so long, then how was he going to be able to collect enough information for his father?

"Well. Meet Kisame at the port on the coast on Wednesday. He will be arriving at pier 3 around noon or so in a ship coming from the Land of Waves. He will be expecting you. When you leave the borders of Konoha you are to wear your uniform. The cloak and hat help conceal your identity to an extent. I had one that was a couple sizes too large made for you, since you are still growing. Mikoto should be able to hem it for you, if she hasn't done so already." Madara smirked at the momentary look of shock that registered in his eyes. "I knew you would tell Fugaku, and I know that Fugaku wants me dead. There is nothing that man, or you for that matter, can keep secret from me."

Itachi stood up straight and shook the hair out of his eyes, looking straight at his mentor. He hadn't expected that either.

Laughing darkly, Madara shook his head. "Itachi, you are my student, and my subordinate. As such, you will keep no secrets from me and I expect full obedience. You are already aware of what punishment I am capable of applying if you fail."

"Yes." Itachi's answer was simple.

"There is information I need from Konoha and when asked, you will provide it."

"Yes." Another one-word answer.

"That is all for now." Madara used a transportation jutsu and disappeared.

Itachi closed is eyes for a couple minutes then started walking back home. He smirked. "No secrets. Full obedience. But he didn't say a word about loyalty."

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The noon-time pedestrian traffic on the waterfront was very heavy. Vendors selling fish and vegetables lined the periphery and carts selling prepared food and drinks rolled from one end of the district to the other. Shoppers, tourists, dock workers as well as travelers and people waiting for travelers filled the area and the mood was pleasant, although noisy. Various groups of children ran through the crowd playing games or just working off excess energy.

The dango and green tea Itachi had bought off one of the carts was some of the best he had every tried and he had to seriously resist the urge to buy more. He was here, after all, to meet his new Akatsuki partner, not get sick off of sweats.

Luckily the ship docked on time. Kisame, however, didn't wait for the gangplank before exiting the ship. As soon as it was fairly close to the pier he waived to a couple of the sailors then jumped onto the dock. They laughed at him and waived back.

"Ah! Glad you're here Itachi. Let's go get some lunch and talk." Kisame immediately started walked back up to the town without waiting for Itachi to answer. Following silently, the boy caught up to the tall, blue man and walked beside him. Their matching red and black cloaks and hats caused a few people to turn their heads. Itachi noticed that Kisame did not have Samehada with him.

The bar they eventually entered was at the southern end of the village near the town wall. Although dark and old, it was surprisingly clean. The dark wood posts that supported the ceiling were smooth and dented in places were generations of people had gripped them. The patrons ranged from a mixture of seedy looking men, to a few families who were looking for a cheap meal.

"It almost looks like a family restaurant." Itachi said curiously.

"Yeah. I agree. The guy who owns it is an ex-ninja and has a lot of shady business dealings. But he is also a father of seven children who considers himself a family man. Kind of schizo if you ask me, but the place never has any fights breaking out so the locals bring their families here." Kisame led Itachi to a booth in the dining area away from the bar. The waitress gave him a dirty look, since technically she was supposed to tell them where to sit. However she quickly decided he was too big to argue with and instead walked up to them with a big smile.

"Here is your menu sir. Would your son like an adult or child menu?" She spoke pleasantly but looked a little shocked when Itachi sighed.

Kisame smirked. "Well, let's see. He hasn't killed anyone in the last twenty-four hours so I'd say he's starting to show _some_ maturity. Give him an adult menu." The woman put the menus on the table and quickly said something about returning in a couple minutes to take their order then practically ran back to the reception area.

Itachi gave a short laugh. He'd forgotten about Kisame's dry sense of humor.

"Couldn't resist." Kisame smiled. "They have half orders here if you want."

"Yeah, that's usually what I get." Itachi was smiling. He actually never liked the child's menu as it only contained finger food or frozen stuff that was preheated badly in microwaves. Not very healthy (according to his mother) or tasty (according to him).

An hour later their meal had been consumed and cleared away. Kisame ordered a drink for himself and Itachi ordered more dango and tea. The restaurant was now packed and very noisy.

"Now we can talk." Kisame said as he pulled out a package from an inside pocket of his cloak. He opened it up and pulled out a ring. "This ring contains a jutsu that will connect you to the other members. You will wear it when you are on missions. Since you still belong to a hidden village you must be extra careful that no one else sees it. You will wear it on only one finger. Do not move it to a different finger. It has something to do with the jutsu. Also, do not loose it."

Kisame reached for Itachi's right hand and when the boy tried to pull his hand away he grabbed his wrist instead and held on tightly. "Relax. I'm not going to cut your hand off." He slipped the ring on Itachi's ring finger then released his hand.

Itachi watched curiously as his fingernails slowly turned black. He had actually thought that Kisame's nails were black because he was going for some kind of Goth look – like some teenagers and young adults he had seen in Konoha and other towns. However, "Is this permanent?"

"No. Your nails will return to normal within a couple minutes of removing the ring. Check out your feet, too." Kisame laughed as Itachi lifted his leg and placed his foot on the bench, then scratched at the blackened toenails.

"I bet you could make a mint selling this to women. In other colors, of course." Itachi thought of his mother and Kisa sitting in the kitchen doing each others nails. It would take an hour or more and the smell was awful. "What's the black for, anyway?"

"Humph. Hadn't thought of that. I think it's related to an old custom among the ancient Tongs, you know, organized crime. That's just my guess. Anyway, we'll be leaving now. We have a mission that I'll explain when we are out of town. Later, when we finish the mission, I'll show you the jutsu we use to communicate with each other." He paused as he was standing up then reached into his inner pocket again. "This is also yours. Your expense account."

When Itachi opened the envelope a half hour later it contained five million ryou. The boy's eyes went wide with shock and he looked up at the blue man walking next to him.

"That is what we receive for each mission. We are paid well, but used mercilessly. The missions are all S-Rank, for the most part. Several members have already died, that's how difficult they are. My suggestion is to spend it fast. A dead ninja with a money in the bank… to me that is sad." Kisame suddenly stopped walking, then walked off into the bushes. A couple minutes later he came back holding a large sword.

"Oh. I was wondering what happened to that." Itachi said curiously.

"Yeah. Couldn't take it with me. I had personal business in the Land of Waves and if they saw me with this it would have caused problems." Kisame looked down at boy and grinned. "You remember not to touch it right? It'll eat your chakra."

Itachi smiled back, "I remember." He continue to walk along, listening to Kisame keep a mostly one-sided conversation. The man seemed to like to talk, but wasn't too concerned that his companion rarely answered. Itachi wasn't talkative anyway, but the current situation also had him on edge. Kisame knew nothing of Madara, so why was he here? What was his motivation? Money? Yet if he was spending it as soon as he got it then there must not be anything he was saving for like an early retirement or something like that.

"So…" Itachi started speaking, then stopped. He didn't like asking people personal questions, but he was very curious. "Why are you in Akatsuki? You were pretty successful in Mist." He saw Kisame's shoulders tighten and a sharp-toothed frown replaced the previous smile.

Itachi looked at the ground. "Excuse me if I overstepped my bounds. You do not need to answer that."

Kisame smirked and patted the boy on the shoulder. "Perhaps I'll tell you one day. For now…" He grunted and shook his head. "Life doesn't always go the way you imagined it would. Truths you believed turn out to be nothing more than your own perception, or mis-perception, of someone else's facts. I will tell you that Akatsuki is nothing more than my current job. You, though. You are our ticket into Konoha. They have many items that we need. I do not need to know any more than that."

"I understand." Itachi said in a soft voice.

Kisame looked down at him. "You think you do, kid. And I think you understand the periphery, but you don't _completely_ understand. It's okay, though. I don't mind." He suddenly laughed out loud. "And by the way, among missing ninja it's considered rude to ask personal questions. Don't worry! You didn't insult me. You didn't know that bit of protocol anyway. But watch out for the others, they can be a little sensitive."

Itachi started to relax a little and took a deep breath. He heard the unspoken words, the same ones his father said to him many times. About how genius could not replace experience. He would have to live many more years and experience much more of life before he could understand some things.

"So what is our mission?" Itachi changed the subject.

"We are infiltrating a feudal lord's house and stealing a scroll. It's in a village in Tea country. I wasn't given any information other than where the lord's house is located and what the scroll is. We'll have to determine everything else when we get there. I believe you told me once that your team did a lot of missions like this. It should be simple for you then." Kisame was matter-of-fact in his speech.

"Well, we'll have to determine that when we get there. It could go either way. Also, if there was a problem I would memorize the scroll. I take it that is not an option?" Itachi was all business.

"No. It's a high level jutsu and apparently the scroll itself is part of it. Leader wasn't any more specific than that." Kisame looked sideways at Itachi. "Also, we are not under any specific orders about killing. If that's what it takes to get the scroll, then we kill those in our way."

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The moon shone over the darkened landscape as Kisame reclined back against a tree. He had been keeping an eye over the estate nestled in the valley below for the better part of two hours. He had seen three tarp-covered ox-carts roll in through the front gates, but no one left. Itachi had offered to do some recognizance to find out more about security inside the estate.

Kisame had realized shortly after he started his observations that there were a lot of people in the estate. Much more than would be considered normal. However, the question that remained, and hopefully would be answered when Itachi returned, was how many were threats and how many were guarding the scroll.

"Seventeen buildings. Ten of which are warehouses." Kisame gave an evil grin, sharpened teeth displayed almost grimace-like. "This guy is definitely up to something." He spoke out loud to his silent companion who had just walked up.

"Definitely. The warehouses are full boxes." Itachi spoke quietly.

"Of what?" Kisame tilted his head slightly.

Itachi put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small jar. "Fish eggs. Why would anyone want this?"

"Caviar, Itachi. And it is a delicacy." He took the bottle and opened it, then used the back of his fingernail to pull out a couple of the small, black eggs. He handed the bottle back to the boy as he put the eggs in his mouth. "Try some. These are extremely high quality, from the eastern islands of Water country. They are actually illegal to export."

Itachi tried some and found them to be extremely salty and not very pleasant tasting. Kisame gave a short chuckle and took the bottle back. "I'll eat the rest." He then pointed at the ground. "Sit down. What kind of security is down there? I've seen several carts enter, but no one has left."

"Security is very high, almost everyone I saw seemed to be a guard of some sort. Civilian and Ninja. The building in question has an almost solid line of ninja surrounding it. I sensed about ten more inside the building." Itachi sat down, but couldn't relax. He had to admit he had never seen a more highly guarded scroll before. "Let's go back to the village and get some sleep. I'd like to see what this place looks like in morning and afternoon."

"Good idea. However, you get some sleep. I'm going to go spend some of my money." Kisame gave a short chuckle at Itachi's confused expression.

"Where are you going?" Itachi asked.

"Something that young boys shouldn't know about." Kisame answered cryptically. "If you want to know more ask your father. I'm not going to explain it to you."

Itachi frowned and glared up at his partner.

"That won't work on me, Itachi. You may be a very powerful ninja, but there are some things I will not discuss with you until you are older." Kisame stood up and started walking away. He was a little surprised the kid didn't catch on to his earlier hint. How could such a powerful ninja be so sheltered? Probably his father's doing. He either never went to brothels or had Itachi so tightly under his control that the boy rarely thought anything out of line. He noticed today, and back in Water Country, that Itachi usually had a passive personality, showed little emotion, and always followed orders, quickly and efficiently. If Itachi was that tightly controlled it could be a problem.

Of course Kisame had seen the boy snap when his comrade had been killed. That was one impressive fight. When he passed on the mission report to the Mizukage he had been very impressed with the young boy and asked lots of questions. For some reason, however, the Kage had refused to have Itachi added to the Bingo book.

Three miles down the road the two Akatsuki entered the village. It was medium sized and, considering its out-of-the-way location was surprisingly busy. Men and women wandered around the main street laughing, talking, and drinking. Several large and brightly lit buildings lined the long street. Men stood outside of them and passed out flyers. Kisame took one of each, handing any food coupons to Itachi, who wadded them up and tossed them over his shoulder, much to the tall man's chagrin.

"This looks like a good place." Itachi finally said. The building they stood in front of was four stories, very ornate, and obviously very expensive.

"Ha! You're catching on. Well, I'm going to…" Kisame leafed through his flyer collection, then grinned, "this one! Grab a room for me, or get one with two beds if they are full. Whatever. See you later!" He walked back down the road.

Itachi had seen the flyer and watched as Kisame disappeared into the crowd. It advertised prostitutes at hourly rates. "So that is what he was talking about. And I bet that was what father was talking about back in Grass country too." Itachi was actually disgusted and clenched his fists as he stared at the men and women walking up and down the street. Some of them turned to look at him with curious eyes.

"So you coming in or are you going to sleep on the steps? I gotta warn ya, cute boys shouldn't be out alone this time of the night." Itachi stepped back, shocked at the words of the man dressed in a formal doorman's uniform. The man shook his head. "Come on, get inside. Your dad'll come back in a couple hours and you should probably be asleep by then." He held the door open and grabbed Itachi's arm, pulling him inside the building. "I'm not kidding about what I just said, either."

Itachi allowed himself to be pulled inside and looked around the extravagant lobby. His sharp eyes identified four different colors of marble, all high grade. A massive gold framed mirror was mounted next to the registration desk and red velvet couches sat waiting for rich guests to sit on them.

Itachi walked up to the registration desk and bowed politely to the clerk. "I'd like to request two rooms if you have them available." He then eyed a small, ornate glass bowl full of candy and helped himself to a piece.

"Of course. What name should I put them under and how long will you be staying?" The old woman behind the desk smiled pleasantly as she pulled out a book that showed a floor plan of the hotel.

Itachi paused for a second. He couldn't give his name, and Kisame was a wanted man. "Obito Godai. I don't know how long." He finally said. "The other man with me is tall and blue and he will be here later."

The woman pursed her lips. "Men. They're all the same. I hope your mother never finds out. Anyway, rooms 33 and 34 are available on the third floor. They are connecting. Here is the key to 33, and the key to the connecting door. When your dad comes I'll give him the key to 34. Sound good?"

"Yeah, fine. Is there room service?" Itachi took the keys, and another piece of candy. He looked around, chewing the caramel toffee, a little confused. He couldn't smell any food. Usually the lobby was located next to the restaurant in order to attract guests off the street.

"Yes. Our kitchen is open twenty-four hours. The restaurant is on the roof – fifth floor. It's beautiful with a roof-top garden surrounding it. You should visit it for breakfast, which, by the way, is included with your room fee."

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Some time after 8am Itachi and Kisame made their way up to the roof restaurant for some breakfast. Kisame had come in around 1am sporting a black eye and a big bruise on his left cheek. He had said something about feisty women and not knowing how to keep his mouth shut. Itachi just smirked. It served him right, after all.

The restaurant was just as opulent as the rest of the hotel. Large glass windows surrounded the small building giving everyone an excellent view of the city and, much to the delight of the two Akatsuki's, the valley where the feudal lord's estate lay. In fact, using binoculars they could clearly see the road that led up to the front gates, even though it was three miles away.

After ordering breakfast they sat and watched the road while they ate. Unlike the night before there was no traffic. However, around 9:15 a convoy of ox-carts showed up. All covered with tarps so you couldn't see inside.

"This just keeps getting worse and worse." Kisame said quietly, so he wouldn't be overheard. "We need to find out what is going on there before we steel the scroll. If they are planning on moving it we're screwed."

"To start with we should grab one of the ninja guarding the building and question him." Itachi was sure that a bit of Genjutsu and tactfully applied force could extract the information.

Kisame grinned, "You sound like you have a plan."

"We wait for one of them to come off shift, then grab him when he leaves the estate to go to the village."

"What if they don't go to the village?" Kisame found it hard to believe they didn't frequent the village on their off-hours, but it was still a point to be considered.

Itachi raised his hand and signaled the waitress.

"May I help you?" She said pleasantly.

"Why are there so many people in town?" Itachi asked innocently. "Last time we came there was hardly anyone here."

"Oh. Umm." The waitress suddenly got nervous, looking around to see who was nearby. "They all work for the feudal lord of this province." She bowed politely then left in a hurry.

"We'll start with her." Itachi said without emotion.

Kisame gave an evil grin, "Agreed."

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Itachi and Kisame hid behind a small building next to the restaurant. Well, actually they were both leaning against it out of view of the back door of the restaurant. The small building housed a large utility elevator that was used to transport supplies to the roof. It was also used as the employee entrance by the hotel workers.

"She goes on her morning break in fifteen minutes. How are you planning on separating her from her co-workers?" Kisame asked.

"Genjutsu." Itachi answered, glancing at his watch. He then looked up at the tall, blue man with the gills on his face and frowned.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" Kisame gave a short laugh.

"Why do people keep thinking you're my father? Do they really think you're that old? You only look in your early twenties."

"Who knows. Just go with it for now. If people can make their own excuses for why you exist and it helps the mission, then let them. Although, you do look a couple years younger than you really are, you know." He laughed when Itachi gave another frown and looked at the ground. "Don't worry about it kid. You have a growth spurt starting up here pretty quick in the next couple years. I don't think you'll reach six feet, but maybe five foot seven or eight, maybe nine. Till then, people will underestimate you and _that_ is a valuable weapon."

Itachi laughed. "That's true. I've gotten some good kills when ninja have done that."

A few minutes passed and the two ninja's heard the sound of women laughing. Itachi activated his Sharingan and stepped away from the building. The four women looked at him in surprise, not expecting to see a kid in the utility area. Itachi put his hands up to form a seal then spoke, "Nehan Shouja no Jutsu."

The four women nodded their heads, then fell down onto the ground fast asleep. Itachi walked over to the waitress and motioned for Kisame to pick her up. He walked over, then carried the woman into the elevator. Itachi followed and closed the doors, then inserted a key he removed from the janitors cabinet to lock the elevator.

Itachi walked over to the sleeping woman and formed some more signs. The woman woke up, but did not reach full consciousness. "This is an interrogation Genjutsu. It doesn't always work, as the mind is capable of resisting, but since she's not a ninja it's a good place to start." Itachi explained to his partner, who was leaning against the wall and looking curiously at the woman.

Grasping the woman's hair Itachi lifted her head so that she was looking at him. "Why does the feudal lord have so many men in his employ?"

"They are delivering contraband and guarding it." The woman's voice came out in a low monotone.

"What are they planning on doing with it?"

"There will be an auction in two days. Buyers are already arriving to place their bids."

"Will they be auctioning any scrolls?" Itachi sensed Kisame's shock at the question as the implications of such a sale on their mission wove their way through his consciousness.

"Yes. They say there are several scrolls up for auction."

Kisame muttered several non-repeatable words and Itachi shook his head to clear it. This was bad news. No wonder the pay was so high - it was definitely an A-rank if not higher mission.

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Back at the overlook they watched the estate throughout the day. As expected security remained high. There was never a time when the building with the scroll was unguarded.

"That sleep jutsu you uses earlier… How many people can you take out with it?" Kisame thought he had a plan.

"Quite a few. They don't have to be in direct line of sight to me either. I see what you are getting at. It'll be dusk soon. People are more vulnerable in the changing light of dawn of dusk so it will be easier to attack then." Itachi looked down at the layout of the estate, trying to estimate where the best place to cast the Genjutsu would be.

"Good. You do the Genjutsu – without affecting me – and I'll pick up the flack. When we reach the building you can get the people inside and the scroll while I watch the outside."

"Perfect. However, the Genjutsu uses a lot of chakra. Truthfully, I just learned it recently. I am certain, however, that it will do the job."

"But you will need to rest afterward." Kisame said flatly.

"Most likely. We shall see. I have never used in on a large group of people before" The "Temple of Nirvana" jutsu was taught to him by his father for the Chuunin exams, but he hadn't actually used it on people until that afternoon. However, he had felt a small pull on his chakra that he didn't feel when using the interrogation jutsu.

"As long as we get the scroll I don't care if you nap for six days." Kisame gave another one of his maniacal smiles.

Itachi laughed, "It's not that bad!"

The two ninja settled in to wait for dusk. The late afternoon sun shone through the green leaves as the summer wind blew lightly over the hill. A battle would begin in a few hours, but right now, life was nothing more than a lazy summer afternoon.

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Next week Itachi and Kisame enter the compound to take the scroll.

The interrogation Genjutsu is the one that was used on Rin by the Rock ninja in the Kakashi Gaiden. They didn't name it and I didn't feel like looking through a Japanese dictionary to find one. Rin was able to resist the jutsu, though, so I think it's probably easy for ninjas with strong minds to fight against it.

Please Review!


	41. Chapter 41 His First Regret

Last week, Itachi meets with Kisame for his first Akatsuki mission. Scouting around a Feudal Lord's house they finally come up with a plan to steel a scroll.

Thanks for all the reviews and fav's!

Oh – and I fixed a bit of the last chapter, too. I had the hand Itachi's ring was on wrong. I also count my fingers weird, so to me the ring finger is the third finger. But to the rest of the sane world the third finger is the middle finger. xD Thanks for finding that! And you guys, if you see more stuff that is off let me know.

I can't believe this story is almost a year old! And I haven't missed a single week, yet. It really doesn't seem like it's been that long.

Disclaimer: When Itachi saves enough money, Kishimoto will no longer own Naruto. Itachi will!

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Chapter 41 – His First Regret

The sun set over the hills surrounding the valley that hid the Feudal Lord's estate. The bright sunlight gave way to dark shadows and hid things that only thirty minutes earlier were in plain sight. The moon would rise in a couple hours, but until then dusk would soon give way to the blackness of night.

Approaching a gate nestled in the bottom of the valley was a tall blue man whose facial features resembled a shark and a small red-eyed boy, both dressed in black robes with red clouds. The four guards on duty stood casually, yet attentively, in front of the twelve-foot red wooden doors. Seeing the two visitors they quickly issued a challenge.

The small boy lifted up his Kasa hat by a couple inches, revealing two red eyes, and whispered, "Nehan Shouja no Jutsu". The guards suddenly saw white fluffy feathers falling around them. Nodding their heads with eyes half closed they all fell to the ground, asleep.

The tallest of the two intruders opened the gate and they both entered the darkened estate.

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Inside the estate lamps were starting to flicker on, but for the most part it was dark. The light sensors couldn't decide if it was dark enough to turn on or off and were blinking in confusion.

The ninja's walking around were guarding the various warehouses or just keeping their eyes open for anything unusual. They were dressed in various styles and wore headbands from many countries.

There were several warehouses lining either side of the road that led from the front gate. One small warehouse was paced directly opposite the gate, forcing the road to split into a "Y" in order to go around it. It resembled an ordinary one story traditional home and, like all the other buildings, painted bright red with yellow trim. However, the windows that were built into it were all fake, and several ninja's stood guard around it. They looked much more efficient than the ones at the front gate.

Kisame decided to add some confusion to the scene, "Kirigakure no Jutso!" He spoke in his regular voice and a heavy mist enveloped the area. It was now impossible to see more than a couple feet. Itachi was able to use his Sharingan to see chakra sources, thus enabling him to pick out the mist enshrouded ninja's.

Itachi formed seals with his hands and concentrated. He was going to have to cast a Genjutsu on people who weren't in his line of sight. It was a difficult jutsu to accomplish and would take a lot of chakra. Breathing deeply he exhaled, forcing his mind to enter a high level of concentration. He then spoke loudly and clearly, "Nehan Shouja no Jutsu!"

As soon as Kisame heard the words he responded with "Kai" to break the Genjutsu's hold on him. He then unsheathed Samehada and held it directly in front of him. He could use it as a sort of "antenna" to find people near him. The sword was attuned to chakra sources and Kisame could "feel" the sword's excitement when it found one. When he had first obtained the sword many years ago it was one of the first abilities he had mastered.

As soon as he finished the jutsu Itachi had immediately felt the drain on his chakra. He estimated that around forty or fifty people were now unconscious on the ground. Quickly, he estimated his remaining chakra to be about sixty percent. That was much better than he thought it would be.

The people who had been out of range were starting to run around in the fog, yelling out commands and asking what was going on. Some were tripping over their sleeping comrades. Kisame laughed, amused at the sudden chaos.

Itachi and Kisame walked over to the building at the end of the short road. The mist continued to hide them and none of the dozen or so ninja's still wandering around saw anything. A moment later they confronted the four remaining Shinobi still guarding the scroll building. They had also utilized "Kai" to break the Genjutsu and were prepared for an attack.

"Reppushou no Jutsu!" was yelled in a hurry by one of the guards. A strong wind blew through the area, taking the mist with it. The road quickly cleared and the streetlights flickered on. Dusk had passed and it was now dark out.

Kisame jumped back as one of the guards, a man as tall and muscular as himself, ran at him. "Umi! Back up Wataru and take out the man! Mahiru and I will take out the boy!"

"Yes Bungo!" Umi answered, rushing over to stand a few feet behind Wataru.

Kisame raised his large sword, all six feet of it, and pointed it at Wataru. "What do you think you are going to do?" He taunted the ninja in front of him.

"Swords are for people who are too stupid to learn ninjutsu." Wataru said confidently. "You won't get close enough to cut me!"

"Samehada doesn't cut! It shaves!" Kisame jumped forward so fast that Wataru was momentarily surprised by the big man's agility and didn't move away fast enough. The large sword was dragged across Wataru's shoulder, shredding the skin as it touched it.

Wataru dropped to the ground, panting. "What…what did you do!" He fell to the ground, weakened.

"That was way too easy. How could you claim to be an expert of ninjutsu if there was so little chakra to drain? That was just a warm up. If you are that far gone so quickly then get a different job!" Kisame sneered, angry. He wanted to feed Samehada and that was barely a snack. He turned to face Umi. "You had better have more chakra than this one." Kisame kicked the fallen man out of the way and advanced.

Meanwhile, Itachi was facing off against Mahiru and Bungo. The ninja and kunoichi standing in front of him stood alert, waiting for him to do something. Itachi was pleased that they were taking him seriously. After all, they had already seen him and Kisame take out many of their comrades.

Itachi decided to start with another Genjutsu. They had dispelled the sleep jutsu easily enough, but if they didn't realize they were in a Genjutsu then it should work. Itachi looked up at them, Sharingan activated. The two shinobi locked eyes with him then stepped back, suddenly on guard, as Itachi put his hands up and sent a fireball directly at the building. It quickly caught fire.

Mahiru and Bungo ran to a fire hose that was placed a few feet away. Turning it on they aimed it at the building. Itachi quickly formed his hands in more signs and said "Nehan Shouja no Jutsu." The two shinobi then saw the flames turn into giant flaming bird wings. As the fire-bird flapped its wings white feathers fell from onto the ground. It lifted up off the building as Mahiru and Bungo fell to the ground. A moment before they fell asleep they realized they had been in a Genjutsu, but it was too late to dispel and unconsciousness took over.

Itachi turned around and saw that Kisame was happily engaging three more ninja, with three already on the ground unconscious. "I'm going in!" Itachi yelled at him"

"OK! I'll clean up out here!" Kisame yelled back as he sliced off an arm.

Itachi showed no reaction at the site and ran into the building. There turned out to be only one room. In the center was a table, covered with a white cloth, with ten scrolls neatly laid out on top. Five ninja's stood in front of the table. Itachi decided to try the sleep jutsu again, but all five broke out of it immediately.

One of the ninja's ran at Itachi and tried to kick him. The boy quickly ducked and used his Sharingan to give him extra speed as he ran behind the man and kicked him in the back. Smiling, Itachi realized he must be getting taller if he was able to reach a man's back with his kicks.

The ninja quickly jumped off the ground and rubbed his back. "We're not getting paid enough for this." The man complained.

Confused, Itachi stared at his opponent. The fight had only begun and he was already complaining? The ninja was probably in his fifties, maybe he was no longer strong enough to fight? However this didn't make sense to Itachi. Many of the Uchiha elders were that old or older and still very powerful.

"So what are you being paid?" Itachi asked, curious. He had no idea why he asked, but sometimes small talk could tell you about an opponent's weakness and should be utilized whenever possible.

"75,000 each. We work as a team." The man said, rubbing his back. His companions let out one collective sigh. They were a little confused over the boy's question and wondered why he had stopped attacking.

Itachi suddenly had an idea. "If I give you 200,000 each can I have the scrolls?"

"That's a million ryou! Are you insane? Why would _you_ have that much?" One of the other ninja's asked.

Itachi put his hand in his pocket, counted out the money by feel, then pulled it out. The five ninja's eyes went wide with shock.

"Is…is it real?" The older ninja asked, then when Itachi nodded he gave him a big smile, "Deal! Masuo, give him the scrolls."

Walking over to the table, Itachi handed over the money. Masuo, who turned out to be the youngest of the freelance ninjas at only sixteen years of age, helped Itachi place the scrolls in several hidden pockets in his cloak.

The five ninja's then did a transportation jutsu and disappeared. Itachi stood alone in the room. He couldn't believe he had just bribed the guards. It was surreal. Perhaps it had been a scam. They had to know what was going on outside. Itachi shook his head in confusion. Well, if he had just been scammed, it wasn't a bad thing. He briefly wondered why the five ninja's were traveling together, but his thoughts quickly returned to the scrolls.

Itachi now had ten scrolls instead of one. He decided to give the scroll they had come after to Kisame and save the rest for his father. He didn't want to be here anyway, and if he seemed too helpful… Itachi didn't know how to finish that sentence. He didn't know what he wanted.

The sounds of battle could be heard outside the building and Itachi realized that Kisame was probably killing a few of the ninja's. Exiting the building he stopped short at the sight before him. The tall man was standing in the middle of about fifteen bodies, some dead, some maimed and moaning in pain, the rest unconscious.

"Well. I'm done here. How about you, Itachi?" Kisame said jovially.

Itachi blinked a couple times. "I'm done. I got it. Let's go." Itachi started running and Kisame followed him. There was no one left to chase them, but the boy felt like running anyway.

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Reaching the edge of Tea country Itachi and Kisame found a small clearing to rest in for a while. It was still dark, but the sun would be rising in an hour so the horizon had a very faint glow to it and the forest had become very still.

"Here's the scroll." Itachi handed the item to his partner. Kisame looked at it, but couldn't help noticing the other scrolls peaking out of Itachi's inside pockets. He almost asked the boy what was going on, but decided not to. He didn't care anyway, as long as the one scroll was in his hands.

"We need to meditate during the communication jutsu so let's sit down." Kisame dropped to the ground and got into position as Itachi did the same ten feet away. He then showed his young partner the proper hand signs. "Concentration is important, however, you must remain aware of your body and surroundings at all times. If you are unable to multi-task your jutsu an enemy could easily kill you with little effort."

"Yes." Itachi listened carefully, fascinated. He had been using Madara's bracelet to communicate for years, but the idea of actually projecting and image of oneself was unheard of.

"Shall we begin?" Kisame smiled.

"Yes." Itachi closed his eyes, formed the proper seals and concentrated. Kisame did the same.

"Kisame. Itachi." A deep voice acknowledged their contact. "Has the mission been completed?"

Itachi and Kisame's bodies appeared in an empty room that was large with white walls, a cement floor and had a large pipe running the length of the ceiling. They appeared as holograms that shimmered in different colors. A man stood in front of them, another hologram. He was tall with spiked hair. Itachi registered momentary shock, however, when he saw the man's eyes. The iris was surrounded by several concentric rings. Itachi instantly activated his Sharingan. He had never seen or heard of such eyes.

Kisame answered, "Yes, we have the scroll. What do you want us to do with it?"

"Bring it to Zetsu in River Country. Head for the border town Hiroyuki. He is busy and can't come to meet you right now." The man's voice held no emotion and he didn't move as he spoke. Itachi felt like his eyes were trying to bore holes into him. The power emanating from the man was just as intense as it was when he had spoken to him back in Dr. Motoi's hospital.

"Itachi. Welcome to Akatsuki. You will no doubt be a great asset." Leader addressed Itachi using formal speech, but did not bow.

Itachi returned the man's gaze, "I am not here of my own free will."

Leader was quiet for about a minute. "You are. We all have free will, Itachi. Even when we think we don't."

Not knowing what to think of that statement Itachi kept quiet. He supposed it was technically true, as long as you didn't mind _death_ as a choice. However, Itachi did, so Leader's words were a little too morbid for his liking.

"If there is nothing else, you may go. I will inform Zetsu that you will be meeting him." Leader dismissed them and Itachi and Kisame came out of their meditation.

Itachi stood up, frowning. Kisame eyed him warily, but kept quiet. He was dying of curiosity to find out how the boy had, apparently, been blackmailed into the organization. He had to be too young to have skeletons in his closet, so perhaps he was protecting someone else's skeletons? His clan's? He wouldn't ask though, but keeping his ears and eyes open he figured he could eventually learn the truth. Patience was one of his "virtues" after all.

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Two days later the two shinobi entered the small town in River country. It was run down and mostly deserted. Shrubs grew like weeds between the boards of the sidewalk and in the middle of the road. Run-down, empty buildings lined the main street and only a handful were still occupied. They saw no people as they walked through the town.

The hotel was small and when they entered it they had to wait a few minutes after ringing the bell for the manager to show up. Eventually an old man appeared and greeted them. "Good afternoon sirs. We have one room left."

"I guess we'll take it then. Two beds?" Kisame said politely.

"Yep. Would you and your son like to eat dinner here? Let me know now so I can tell the missus to set you a place." The man pulled out a register and opened it up.

Kisame was about to say "no" when he realized that he probably couldn't take Itachi into a bar. River country didn't allow underage children in drinking establishments. Most of the other countries allowed children in bars that served food. Since this was a small town it would be harder to get away with sneaking him in.

"Yeah, we'll eat here." Kisame said, sighing.

"Tired? Traveling is hard business. Get some rest. Dinner is at 6pm in the dining room. What name can I use for the register?" The manager was talkative and pleasant.

"Hans." Kisame said.

"Hans it is!" The man wrote down the name and handed over a key. "We are a small hotel, only five rooms, but sometimes we could really use more. I'm thinking of buying the building next door to expand." He walked them to the stairs.

"Excuse me." Itachi finally spoke.

"What is it, son?" The manager said in a kind voice.

"Why do you think I am his son?" Kisame's eyes went wide at Itachi's question. Hadn't he told him to let people come to their own conclusions and then let it be?

The manager gave a short laugh. "Hans is obviously a ninja. You are too young to be a ninja. Everyone knows that people are first apprenticed as ninja when they are teenagers. What are you, eight? Nine? Too young. Therefore, you must be his son."

"But we don't look anything alike."

"Ah! But that is because ninja disguise their appearance. He either looks exactly like you, or he's your step-father. Which is it?" The manager found Itachi's questions to be cute. He had boarded probably a couple hundred ninja during his career as a hotel owner and he had seen some pretty odd disguises. Kisame's appearance didn't strike him as unusual at all.

"Well, when the paternity tests come back I guess we'll find out." Kisame laughed at his joke and the manager joined him, very much amused.

"That's a good one! Haven't heard that before! Well, I'll see you two at dinner." The manager walked off, still chuckling.

Entering the small room both Shinobi shrugged off their cloaks and sat down, glad to be doing something other than walking. The room was a little stale smelling and stuffy, but not unpleasant.

"What were you trying to pull down there, Itachi?" Kisame was serious again.

Itachi frowned. "I just wanted to know how people were coming to the conclusion that I was your son."

"Does it matter? I told you before that we should let people jump to their own conclusions. It's better than lying to them."

"I know. It just… I understand his logic now. I just didn't know if they believed it or if they were humoring us."

Kisame closed his eyes and sighed. Itachi was obviously very analytical. He wasn't happy with knowing that the sky was blue, he had to know the exact shade and at what time of day that shade existed. This could be a problem. After all, he had his own secrets and he didn't want his new partner to find them out.

On the other hand, Itachi had a point. If people thought he was a kidnapper and were humoring him by calling him Itachi's "father", then they could turn around and tell the local authorities about him. It could draw unwanted attention.

"I see your point, Itachi." Kisame admitted. "This could become a problem."

"We'll just take it as it comes." Itachi said plainly.

"Only way we can do it." Kisame smirked. "Now, where is Zetsu?"

"Is he in this hotel? It's the only one in town."

"I doubt it. Zetsu has a rather unique physiology. He probably wouldn't be able to get a room in any hotel." Laughing, Kisame stood up and opened the only window. A light summer breeze blew in, instantly lightening the air in the stuffy room.

"Oh?"

"I'll let it be a surprise. You'll see it when we meet with him."

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"Does he taste good?" A man with a half white, half black face and a venus flytrap growing about three feet straight up out of his shoulders, slowly rose out of the ground. One foot remained attached to a root. His diction was almost robotic.

"Be nice. He appears to be a very nice child." The man spoke again, only this time the voice was normal and sounded kind.

"But I'm hungry."

"Let's just get the scroll and leave."

Itachi and Kisame stood looking at the strange man with two very different expressions on their faces. Kisame was annoyed, and Itachi was amazed.

"Would you really eat me?" Itachi asked curiously.

"No." The nice voice said.

"Yes." The hungry voice answered.

"Itachi, this is Zetsu. He's a cannibal. He acts as our hunter nin so if you were to die on a mission, yes, he would eat you." Kisame smirked at the boy. He wasn't even trying to hide his surprise at meeting the giant plant man.

Itachi was dying to ask if he came from the same clan as Yuri, but he knew he had to keep his mouth shut. Although, he must be related to her in some capacity. The way he was using the roots to create a clone to collect the scroll was definitely something his teammate back in Konoha was expert at.

"Here's the scroll, Zetsu. Anything to pass on to us?" Kisame pursed his lips in displeasure. As he had moved closer to pass over the scroll he had smelled rotten meat. Knowing Zetsu, it was probably human.

Zetsu noticed Kisame's reaction. "Kakuzu killed his partner again. It'll take a few days for him to completely decompose."

"He did what?" Itachi asked before he could stop himself.

"Kakuzu has anger-management issues, Itachi. I believe this here," He pointed at Zetsu, "is partner number four since he joined Akatsuki."

"Hn." Itachi found that bit of information a little disconcerting. Obviously, even though partnered, loyalty really was optional.

The robot-Zetsu voice spoke to Itachi, "Better behave yourself kid, or Kisame'll be giving me something to eat next."

Kisame shook his head, not wanting to be involved in the conversation.

"Although, he really is nothing more than an appetizer, so small!" Robot-Zetsu spoke as he disappeared back into the ground.

"Let's go." Kisame sighed. "What's so funny?"

Itachi was smiling. He remembered an incident at his fourth birthday party, the last time he had seen Obito.

_Suddenly Itachi found himself hanging upside down by his ankles and someone was tickling his tummy. He started laughing as he squirmed around to see Obito holding him and Shisui tickling him. He heard more laughter and he turned his head to see some of the clansmen had arrived and were watching them. "Caught yourself a pretty small fish there, Obito, better throw it back!" One of them yelled. _

"_Nah – I feel like having an appetizer before lunch." Obito yelled back as he set Itachi back on his feet. Itachi looked up at Obito with a big smile._

"Nothing, just, didn't expect to see a plant man." Itachi chuckled. The coincidence was interesting. He had been called a fish back then, and here was traveling with a man who resembled a shark. And he had used Obito's name for the hotel register back at the Feudal Lord's village. And Zetsu had called him an appetizer.

Kisame gave the boy a sidelong glance and shook his head again. Zetsu couldn't possibly be that funny.

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A few days later found Itachi in his fathers meeting room at 2am. The room was darkened and both father and son were using their Sharingan eyes to see. Itachi had laid out the nine scrolls and Fugaku was reviewing them one at a time.

"This is quite a find, Itachi. In fact, this one was stolen from Konoha about fifteen years ago. I recognize it from back then." Fugaku smiled.

"The Leader's eyes were different, too. It was some kind of Kekkei Genkai, I'm sure of it. They had several circles instead of an iris." Itachi explained quietly.

Fugaku's eye's went wide. "It can't be." He whispered.

"What is it? Do you know what it is?"

"Rinnegan. It was the original eye jutsu of the man who created ninjutsu. I can't believe Madara found such a person. This will make him ten times harder to kill." Fugaku sighed, suddenly feeling tired.

"Itachi, find out what the organization's goals are. This may affect our plans, or it may not. However, I can't take that chance."

Itachi bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement.

"I had to make an excuse for you while you were gone. Your team was called away on a mission so I told the Hokage you had already left on a mission for the clan. They left without you." Fugaku had stood up and was placing the scrolls into a cabinet.

"Without me? But they should have grabbed another person!" Itachi was a little worried. The type of missions his team went on were usually dangerous and everyone was needed. Why hadn't the Hokage assigned a replacement or called it off?

"I don't known what was going on with that. You can ask them yourself when they come back."

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"Itachi Uchiha!" Itachi and his family were sitting in the living room a few days later when a voice yelled from the front door of the house. Itachi stood up and walked out onto the porch.

"That's me." He said calmly.

"The Hokage wants to see you immediately. Something happened to your team." The man disappeared and Itachi grabbed the wall in shock, suddenly imagining the worst. He felt, rather than saw his father and mother standing a few feet behind him. Before they could say anything he ran out the door as fast as he could.

Entering the Hokage's chamber he was greeted somberly by Sarutobi who stood up and walked over to him. Kakashi and a couple other jounin were also in the room, but none of them would make eye contact with the boy.

"What happened?" Itachi asked impatiently.

"Itachi, Yurina was killed. She was being hunted by a Cloud ninja for the bounty. Kakashi and his team were nearby and tried to bring her back, but she died on the way. Yuri and Sana fought, and they will recover, but right now they are in the hospital. Probably for another week." Sarutobi closed his eyes, trying to compose his thoughts.

Itachi's face had gone blank. He got down on his knees and put his forehead on the floor. "I apologize. It's my fault. If I had been there it wouldn't have happened. I could have protected her."

"Itachi it's not your fault!" The Hokage looked at the boy kneeling on the ground and sighed. "Itachi, stand up. It's not your fault. No one blames you. If anything… I should have waited. I sent them, after all. Blame me instead."

Itachi stood up slowly, his face still blank. "If I hadn't been on that mission. Why did I have to go? Why couldn't someone else do it?"

"You have certain obligations to your clan, Itachi, I have to work with that with all the clans."

"But what about the village?" Itachi asked so quietly that Sarutobi barely heard him.

Kakashi stepped up and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll walk with you to the hospital, Itachi."

The walk was silent. Itachi was lost in his thoughts, and so was Kakashi. Finally Itachi broke the silence. "Thank-you for looking after Yurina. Did you bring back her body?"

"We brought it back. Her family has it. She was very badly injured." Kakashi spoke quietly.

"I'm sorry it took you from your mission."

"Konoha is my mission, Itachi." Kakashi said firmly.

"I wish it was mine." Itachi's face finally broke it's blank expression as regret and sorrow replaced it.

Kakashi didn't know what to say next, so he kept quiet. He knew the dynamics of clans was very different from everyone else. Divided loyalties plagued the members their entire lives, and even though Kakashi was still young he had seen enough of that to know how difficult it could be.

"They are on the second floor, room 52. And Itachi," Kakashi knelt down in front of the boy and put his hands on his shoulders, "it isn't your fault. Please don't blame yourself." Kakashi stood up and turned around to leave, but was stopped when Itachi grabbed his arm.

"Is he still alive? The hunter?" The voice coming from the boy was firm and defiant.

"Yes."

"I will kill him." Itachi walked into the hospital as Kakashi tried to wrap his mind around what the boy had just told him.

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Yuri and Sana were suffering from chakra exhaustion as well as several other injuries. They were both asleep when Itachi arrived, so he sat and watched them for an hour. He had let his team down. He knew he carried them on his back during missions, and he accepted that. To go off without him had led to this. He couldn't accept it. The only way he could think of to repay them was to kill the murderer. Revenge. He was sure his father would give him the resources. After all, he could use it as a way for his son to show loyalty to Konoha. Itachi sneered at the thought of his father using him again. Especially when it concerned his teammates.

Itachi wondered if Yurina and Yota were together, and if so what they were talking about. He hoped it wasn't about how he had failed them.

Walking out of the hospital he was greeted by Sheeta, who happened to be passing by.

"Where is Aya?" Itachi asked half-heartedly. Usually Sheeta and Aya were never apart.

"We are supposed to spend two hours away from each other. Dr. Yakushi said it's therapy so we can learn to be on our own." Sheeta was looking at Itachi with concern in her eyes. "Are you okay?"

"Let's go for a walk." Itachi said quietly.

The two children walked outside of the village for about an hour when Itachi finally spoke again. "My sensei was killed because I wasn't there to protect her." The words were painful to say, painful to admit to the girl he had sworn to protect several months earlier.

"I…I'm sorry." Sheeta watched as Itachi suddenly put his hand to his face and wiped away a tear, then looked at it as if wondering what it was. He then turned away from her.

"Itachi… I'm… I'm not Lord Fugaku… you can cry in front of me if you want. I won't tell." Sheeta wasn't sure why she said it, but it seemed like the right thing to say.

Itachi dropped to the ground and buried his face in the leaves as the tears came. He trusted her, he knew she would keep his secret.

Sheeta sat down next to him and stroked his back. She remembered several weeks earlier on her first mission, Mikoto had pulled her aside and spoken to her about Itachi.

"_He is different, Sheeta, he has trouble getting close to people because he has trouble understanding emotion. Others see that as aloofness, or indifference, but I know he has a good heart. However, his heart is being torn apart by several people who are trying to grab the biggest piece. I can't explain it all to you, and you're hardly old enough to understand anyway. If you were to leave him, I could understand. After everyone gets their share of him, there may not be anything left for you."_

"_Lady Mikoto, I won't abandon him. He's my friend and Fumitake says we should never in a million years abandon our friends."_

Mikoto had given her a hug after that and smiled, but then her face had become unreadable. Sheeta had been worried about Itachi ever since. She wanted desperately to talk to Aya about it, but suspected that Mikoto wanted the conversation to be kept a secret.

Looking down she realized that Itachi had shifted and was now laying with his head in her lap, asleep.

"Lady Mikoto," Sheeta whispered, "if there is nothing left over then why is he here with me now?"

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Next week – Itachi begins his quest for revenge and, as expected, Fugaku uses the quest to further his own ambitions.

Hope you liked the bit of ItachiXSheeta. They are cute together. xD

Please Review!

Updates on Fridays.


	42. Chapter 42 For my brother

Last week Itachi completed his first Akatsuki mission by bribing the mercenaries hired to guard a scroll he wanted. He also met Zetsu and had an interesting discussion with Leader. Upon returning to Konoha he discovered that his team was sent on a mission without him and his sensei was killed by a bounty hunter. He decides to go after the man and kill him.

Thanks for all the reviews and fav's!

You know, as one reviewer pointed out, I think I have been slacking off on background descriptions. I'm getting too caught up in the action and forgetting to describe the scene appropriately. Bad habit. I'll try to do better at descriptions, after all it sets the scene. xD

Disclaimer: Deidara is tired of being sidelined and would like to remind everyone that if he owned Naruto instead of Kishimoto everyone would have better appreciation for his art. Sasori begs to differ and would appreciate it if Deidara would quit complaining about being an imaginary character.

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Chapter 42 – For my brother

Keenly observant eyes gazed over the multitudes of precious and semi-precious stone's that lay beneath the polished glass of the Konoha jewelry store. The glittering gems sparkled seductively, forcing one to look closer and forget everything.

"Has the young gentleman decided on a stone yet?" The proprietor spoke in his usual kind voice. He had been assisting his young client all morning and was endlessly amused at the boy's perfectionist tendencies. Convinced that he would have made an excellent jeweler if he had not heeded the call of the ninja, the middle-aged man smiled with approval when a selection was finally made.

Itachi nodded and pointed to a small diamond. "Third row, fifth stone from the right." The boy had been in the store for two hours. He wanted to make sure the birthday gift he bought Sheeta was perfect. The quest had been divided into three parts: picking out the type of jewelry, picking out the setting, then picking out the stone to put in the setting. He finally decided on a necklace, then a rose-shaped pendant, then a diamond.

"I shall have the merchandise ready for you to pick up tomorrow." The man used a pair of tweezers to pick up the diamond and deposit it in a velvet lined box next to the chain and pendant.

Itachi nodded once and walked out of the shop. For the last few weeks he had only two things going through his mind. The first made him happy. Sasuke and Sheeta both had birthdays within days of each other and he looked forward to purchasing their gifts. Although Sasuke had been easy to shop for (he had specifically instructed his older brother as to what gift he should receive, much to Itachi's chagrin), Sheeta's gift had to be extra special. Itachi's second concern was darker. He had sworn to kill the man who had killed his sensai.

Walking toward the Hokage's tower Itachi re-considered his options. He had researched the man, using as many resources as he could. However, he came up short. Yuri and Sana had created a sketch of what he looked like but the man was not in any bingo book or profile. The three of them had sat in a conference room at the police station looking through every bingo book from several different nations. They even looked through the old ones. The three children then utilized the resources at the Chuunin headquarters, but found that they were the same as what they had viewed at the police station.

Kakashi, who for some reason was intent on helping, told Itachi that ANBU might have more resources, but he would have to ask the Hokage for permission to use them. Which is where he was now heading.

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"Itachi, what you have just said concerns me. We should have a fairly complete collection of foreign ninja profiled in the Chuunin archives, yet the fact that you did not find this one is of great concern. Kakashi has a copy of this man's sketch?" Sarutobi sat as his desk with his chin resting on his hands. Itachi, who was standing at attention in front of him, nodded.

"I'll have Kakashi start an ANBU investigation then. We must find out whom he is and if he is danger to Konoha."

"What!" Itachi spoke loudly, almost yelling. "Of course he's a danger! He killed Yurina!"

"Itachi, moderate your behavior. I understand your feelings, but we do not make it a habit to chase after people for revenge. We are here to make money and we do not get paid when our own people head out on their own to hunt." The Hokage's words were attentive, but they had a bored edge to them that Itachi easily picked up.

"So your own people don't matter to you." Itachi calmed down and was now speaking in his regular voice.

The Hokage closed his eyes. "Itachi. I am taking it seriously. Let's wait to see what Kakashi digs up in the ANBU records, then meet again to discuss it. If he is a threat then I will have him added to the Bingo book and if any ninja's see him they can capture or kill him."

"I will kill him." Itachi said plainly.

"Are you asking for an assassination mission?"

Itachi thought for a couple minutes. "Yes I am. I wish to join ANBU and that is the kind of mission I would be doing for them."

"Good boy. You are everything I thought you were. First, let's wait and see what Kakashi finds. I'll call for you then."

Itachi bowed formally and left the room. He felt like the Hokage had baited the conversation so that he would ask for an assassination mission. Perhaps this was another ANBU test? If it was he couldn't help but feel it was in bad taste to use Yurina's memory to turn him into an assassin. But if that was what it take to get his revenge, then so be it.

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Kakashi straightened his back and stretched. His muscles were stiff from sitting still for the last four hours. The ANBU archive was deep underground and a little stuffy. The room itself was fairly large, filled with bookcases and file cabinets full of shinobi profiles as well as information on various fighting techniques and mission profiles (the ones not deemed top secret, that is). The bright fluorescent fixtures gave the room a harsh light that Kakashi was not used to. He preferred to read outside in daylight.

The ninja was determined to find a name to match the sketch he had received from Yurina's team. He still couldn't believe his friend was gone. She had survived a war and many missions afterward, only to be taken down by some no-name bounty hunter. So many of his friends were dead, and now one more. It wasn't fair. He kept saying that over and over as looked through the books and files, but nothing ever changed.

The vision of Yurina's eyes as they closed for the last time wouldn't leave Kakashi's thoughts. She had known she was dying, he could tell from the look she had given him, even though she couldn't speak. Gripping his head and leaning forward on his elbows he closed his eyes tightly. Kakashi had a crush on her for a long time, yet never got the courage to ask her out. Now it was too late. Always too late. His thoughts turned to Rin, his old teammate. He hadn't seen her in years. He didn't even know where she was, or the reason why she left.

"Have you found anything?" The Hokage entered the ANBU archive, causing Kakashi to sit up straight in surprise. He had never seen the man down here before.

"No."

"You've looked through all these files and books?" Sarutobi looked at the pile in amazement. It covered the entire six foot long table.

"Yes."

"Go home and rest. It's safe to say the man is not in our records. I will think about it for a few days. Itachi has asked for an assassination mission and I'm thinking of sending him with you for this. You are one of the best assassins we have and Itachi has the potential be as good as or better than you."

Kakashi smirked under his mask. "If you sent me alone, he would just get his father to assign him the mission and follow me."

Sarutobi laughed. "That he would! The boy has a way of getting what he wants, even if he doesn't realize he's doing it. That is one of the reasons I like him. His devotion to duty is without arrogance."

"ANBU would like to use this as a test, then." Kakashi stated as he started to clean up the pile of books in front of him.

"Of course. It's a perfect opportunity."

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Sheeta's birthday party was well attended, considering some had been at Sasuke's party only a couple days earlier. Her foster parents (whom she and Aya now called mother and father) went all out.

The yard was decorated with balloons and streamers and several tables had been setup for people to sit at. Yellow, white and lavender carnations were placed in the center of each table. They matched Sheeta's kimono, which was pale yellow with white and lavender butterflies woven into the fabric. The lunch was all catered from the Uchiha restaurant and the cake (also decorated to match that wonderful kimono) was from the Uchiha bakery.

The large cherry trees that lined the back fence filtered sunlight over the guests, keeping the afternoon from getting too hot. The patio was surrounded by a lush green lawn and the sound of a bamboo water fountain could be heard as it rose and fell, hitting another piece of bamboo under it.

Although Sheeta had only been living with them for a few months, her foster parents wanted her first birthday with them to be memorable. Not having children of their own they were probably just as excited as their new daughter.

Among the people in attendance were all of Sheeta's siblings, Shisui and his parents, Rumiko and her fiancé and Itachi and his parents and brother. It was a surprise when Fugaku and Toshiro agreed to attend, but then again, two men felt obligated because of the recently signed betrothal agreements. After all, Sheeta and Aya would be marrying into the main branch of the Uchiha clan and that was considered a great honor. Not to mention that Sheeta would one day take Mikoto's position as headman's wife when Itachi replaced his father.

There was one person in attendance, though, who was very nervous. Itachi had been fretting over the present he had purchased Sheeta. He was starting to wish he could give it to her in private, but as usual at birthday parties, all the gifts were opened in public. What if she didn't like it? He found the feelings he was having strange. He usually never felt this undecided about anything and kept trying to tell himself to calm down, but his nervousness wouldn't go away.

Finally, after all the presents had been opened Itachi approached and handed her a small box, carefully wrapped in pale yellow paper. Coincidentally it matched the kimono she was wearing.

Slowly unwrapping the paper, Sheeta could hardly wait to see what was inside. Neither could anyone else and the garden was very quiet as they watched the birthday girl. Itachi stood next to her, his fists clenched shut inside the pockets of his Yukata. She finally opened the jewelry box and looked at Itachi.

"This is for me?" She asked awe-struck.

"Yes. Do you… do you like it?" His voice was quiet and full of concern.

"I love it! It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen!" Sheeta's face lit up with what Itachi swore was the biggest smile he had ever seen. Her mother looked over her shoulder at the necklace and gasped, putting her hand over her mouth.

"Hold it up! We want to see what it is!" Kisa said jovially. Sheeta turned the box around and the sun hit the perfect diamond nestled in the 14 karat rose pendant. Everyone's eye's popped out of their sockets. Itachi was surprised by the reaction, but pleased nonetheless. He reached over and removed the necklace from the box and moved behind Sheeta. She was still a couple inches taller than him. He carefully put it around her neck then moved in front of her and positioned it exactly in the center of her neck. He then stepped back and looked. It glistened just the way it was supposed to and he smiled in relief.

Suddenly everyone was shouting out comments, making Sheeta blush. "Thank-you Itachi. It's beautiful." She hesitated for a second, then reached over and kissed him quickly on the cheek, and blushed harder. Itachi put his hand over his cheek and smiled.

"I'm so glad you like it." He whispered back to her, relief flowing through him.

"Is it okay?" Sheeta's foster father walked up to Fugaku later, concerned. "It's a very expensive piece of jewelry and they are both still children. I don't have much experience with kids, but I'm sure this isn't the kind of thing they normally buy for each other."

Fugaku smiled, "Yes. They are betrothed so it is okay in that regard. Plus, I suspect Itachi doesn't understand its monetary value. He tends to be a little obsessive-compulsive about some things and no doubt saw this as way to express his friendship. And, of course, he also tends to be a perfectionist so he had to find the best of whatever he wanted to give her. I'll have to find a way to explain it to him, later. It's okay to buy Sheeta expensive gifts, but he needs to understand moderation too."

"Thank-you, my Lord." The man bowed his head and went to talk to his wife. Fugaku smiled. He tended to buy expensive jewelry for Mikoto whenever he had to apologize to her or cover something up. He wondered what she would do if he bought her something when nothing was wrong. Might be worth a try. If Itachi got a peck on the cheek, well, he should be able to get a lot more than that.

"What are you up to?" Mikoto asked, suspicious. Fugaku was standing next to her with an odd smile on his lips.

"Nothing."

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It was the end of August before the Hokage finally called Itachi back to his office. The boy had been spending the intervening weeks training with his team and had even gone a short three day mission for Akatsuki and a two day mission for his father. However, nothing had come up for his team, causing the three teammates to worry about their futures. Sana had decided that she no longer wanted to join ANBU, and was considering becoming an instructor at the academy. Itachi and Yuri still wanted to join and were hoping that the opportunity would come soon.

Entering the Hokage's office Itachi saw that Kakashi was already there, as well as another man he had never seen before. The third man was the same height as Kakashi, with dark brown hair and large brown eyes. He also appeared to be about eighteen or nineteen years old. Both Kakashi and the stranger were dressed in Jounin attire, complete with olive-green vests.

Itachi walked to the center of the room and stood next to Kakashi. In contrast to the two men next to him he was dressed for summer in blue shorts and a short sleeve white shirt that had the Uchiha crest on the back. The stranger stepped forward a couple paces so he could get a good look at Itachi, then stepped back in line.

"I am sorry it took so long to get back to you, Itachi. Kakashi found nothing in the ANBU archives and after thinking about it for a couple days I decided to send an ANBU team to find out more information. They returned last night." The Hokage stood up and walked around his desk so that he was standing six feet away from the three ninja's.

Itachi listened attentively, but was a little put out that he wasn't sent on the mission. He kept his face blank, though. He wanted to look professional in front of Kakashi and the other man, and truth be told, he was a little embarrassed at the way he had conducted himself the last time he had met with the Hokage. His show of emotion had been inappropriate.

"It was discovered that the man is a missing ninja, but because he left his village a few months after becoming a Genin the Village hidden in the Clouds never put him in their Bingo book and consequently we never heard of him. He's in his mid-twenties now and making a name for himself amongst the crime syndicates for his assassination skills. I believe, as do others, that the last four assassinations on Leaf village shinobi were carried out by him. He was even skilled enough to confront the ANBU team tracking him. Although, he decided to mock them instead of killing them." The Hokage laughed, "That was a mistake. They returned, very much alive, and with complete information." He stopped talking and looked closely at Itachi, as if sizing him up. The boy returned his gaze without hesitation.

"Itachi, I have already spoken with your father about this mission and your future, and I have his permission." He paused again. Itachi wondered why he would need his father's permission for anything, but kept quiet. "Although you are a Chuunin under my employ, you are still a ten-year-old minor and in order for you to move from being a regular shinobi into ANBU I needed the permission of a parent or guardian. Now that I have that I can tell you what is to happen next."

Itachi's heart jumped a beat at the good news. He wished the Hokage would speak faster.

"This mission is to be your entrance examination into ANBU. Depending on how you conduct yourself and the mission's success, you will be indoctrinated into ANBU. Kakashi and Tenzou will fill you in on the rest as you travel. They have been in ANBU for a few years and you should accept their tutelage with an open mind. It can take a normal person two years to become a fully qualified ANBU operative. The training is harsh and unforgiving. There is a fifty percent drop-out rate and a twenty-five percent death rate amongst new recruits. It is nothing like what you have experienced before as a Genin, even given the advanced nature of your team's missions.

"The mission itself is to track down the target and exterminate him using any means necessary. You will leave in two days.

"Itachi, I don't care what your father says, if you don't want this, don't do it. You have choices in your life and I will stand behind you." The Hokage's eyes were boring holes in Itachi's head. He had heard the Akatsuki leader also tell him he had choices. The boy almost snorted in derision. Whoever invented the word "choice" obviously never lived on Earth. Probably a Martian or something.

"I will be ready for the mission and conduct myself in accordance with the expectations of an ANBU candidate." Itachi spoke formally and bowed to the Hokage.

After the three shinobi left the room Sarutobi sat down on the edge of his desk and sighed. Fugaku was pushing his son too hard, that much was extremely evident. Unfortunately, Itachi was also pushing himself just as hard.

He hadn't told Itachi everything about the conversation he had with Fugaku. The Clan lord indicated that he was considering going on the mission as well to ensure its success. Sarutobi had told him that he was welcome if that was what he wanted. He could only put together three people for a team and since most teams consisted of four shinobi there would be no problem with an extra person. It was not unusual for Fugaku or Hiashi Hyuuga for that matter, to join in on some of the higher ranked "A" or "S" ranked missions when his own shinobi were unavailable. However, he had to wonder how Itachi would take that bit of news. He decided to let Fugaku handle it himself.

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After exiting the Hokage's office, Kakashi led everyone to a balcony at the end of the hallway. It was open to the sky and overlooked the village, being on the top floor of the building. Leaning on the steel railing Kakashi gave them a rundown of what they were going to do.

"Itachi, this is Tenzou. He joined a couple years after me and I was assigned as his 'mentor' so to speak. All ANBU recruits have an older ANBU that they go to when they have questions or problems and in turn the 'mentor' keeps an eye on his recruit, correcting him when necessary or giving him encouragement. He has a unique ability that you need to keep quiet about. Only certain people are told of his talents, on a need-to-know basis, but since you will be on our team it is necessary for you to know." Kakashi nodded his head at Tenzou, who smiled back at him and lifted his hand. Wood started to grow from his finger and when it reached three feet long he tapped Itachi lightly on the head.

"Wow! Just like the First, right?" Itachi's eyes went wide.

"Yes." Tenzou, laughed. "I've been studying his methods in the old scrolls and learning some of his jutsus."

Kakashi smiled, "We'll meet at the front gate in two days at 7am."

"In Kakashi-speak that means noon." Tenzou winked at Itachi, who smiled.

"7am, Tenzou. Let's not put out a bad example for the new kid."

"Okay, we'll be there. But if you're not we're pulling you out of bed instead of waiting."

"Got it." Kakashi said, sighing in resignation.

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The next morning after breakfast Itachi told Sasuke he could come with him for a while and watch him train.

"But I have a mission tomorrow so I need to get back early and study for it." Itachi smiled as the five-year-old started hopping around in excitement.

"Yeah! I get to go with Itachi!" Sasuke ran to the porch to put his shoes on. "Come on! Hurry up!" He yelled when he realized Itachi hadn't followed him.

"Would you like me to fix you two a lunch to take with you?" Mikoto asked, trying not laugh.

"Nah. We'll be back by then. I really do have some studying to do." Itachi walked out to his waiting brother.

The two boys walked outside of the village and onto a small path that lead through the forest. It was the same path that Itachi had run down many years earlier, scared and crying, to escape from his father. The late summer sun filtered through the leaves, leaving a patchwork of sun and shade on everything, making the trail seem much happier than it had been back then.

Sasuke would alternate between walking, running and skipping. Itachi, who had never behaved that way found it fascinating that his brother did. Shisui had never behaved that way either. Although he would bet a months pay that Obito did. In fact, he remembered his mother and Kisa speaking one day about how Sasuke did remind them of Obito at times.

They reached a tree that had fallen across the path a few years earlier, partially blocking the path. "Get on my back." Itachi instructed as he knelt down. Sasuke climbed on and Itachi jumped up onto the log and then back down to the forest floor. Sasuke climbed down, laughing.

"That was fun! I can hardly wait until I can do that!" Sasuke ran ahead a few feet, then waited for Itachi to catch up, and ran forward again. He played that game until they reached the location Itachi often used for shuriken practice. He and Shisui had set it up with Madara's help many years ago. However, because he was so skilled with shurikens he rarely used it anymore.

The practice area was in the woods instead of in a clearing. Eight targets had been placed at various locations to simulate an obstacle course. Seven were placed around trees and one was behind a six foot mound of dirt. None of them could be hit directly from a stationary position.

After telling Sasuke where to stand so he would be out of the way, Itachi placed eight small kunai between his fingers and crossed his arms in front of him. He then jumped up in the air and activated his Sharingan. Somersaulting to gain momentum he let fly six of the kunai, then sent the other two after them. The last two kunai bounced off each other, changing their trajectory. He landed a second later in a crouch, a look of concentrated determination on his face.

Sasuke ran out from his hiding place and quickly looked at each of the targets. Each kunai had hit dead-center. "You got them all! Even the hidden one!"

Itachi practiced for about an hour using different methods to deflect the kunai towards the targets. He bounced them off each other, but he also used the trees, rocks, and the ground. No matter how he threw the small knives, he never missed. Sasuke was in awe the entire time. He loved to watch his big brother training. It was better than the ninja in the cartoons. However, he finally had enough of watching.

"It's my turn now!" Sasuke yelled excitedly.

Itachi looked up at the sky. "Sasuke, we have to go."

"Oh! But I didn't get a turn. You said you'd teach me! You lied to me!" Sasuke pouted.

Itachi tried to remember when he said he would teach him to throw a kunai and realized it was several months ago. He waved the boy over to him and Sasuke came running. "I don't have time today. I have a mission I need to study for. Some other time, okay?" He reached out and poked his brother in the forehead.

Sasuke rubbed his head then grinned mischievously. "Watch me!" He pulled eight kunai out of his own weapon's holster and jumped up into the air.

"Stop! You're going to hurt yourself!" Itachi yelled out a warning, but Sasuke had already jumped up into the air and tried to summersault. While he did accomplish the summersault and he did throw the kunai, his landing was a little rough.

"Ow!" Sasuke grabbed his ankle and pulled it toward his body. "It hurts!"

Itachi quickly bent down next to him. Mikoto would skin him alive if Sasuke broke a bone. Applying a small amount of chakra to the appendage he sighed in relief. "It's just a small sprain. It'll be a little sore for a day or two but you'll live." Sasuke frowned, a little embarrassed. He reached out and gathered up his dropped kunai. None had gone further than a few inches.

"Do you want me to carry you?" Itachi asked, concern entering his voice. The ankle was starting to turn color and swell.

"I can walk." Still pouting Sasuke climbed to his feet but cried out again when he put his weight on his sprained ankle.

Itachi smiled and knelt down in front of his brother, back exposed. "Climb on."

After fifteen minutes Sasuke's good humor returned and he laughed, surprising Itachi who fully expecting the boy to continue to pout the entire way home. "What's so funny? If you're feeling better maybe you didn't sprain your ankle and are looking for a free ride?" He teased Sasuke, smiling as he looked back at him.

"I'm going to go the Academy and become just as good as you are! Just you wait and see!" Sasuke declared to the world.

Itachi amused his brother on the return trip by jumping up into the trees and leaping through the branches for a while before returning to the road. He enjoyed being with Sasuke, it made him forget about how complicated his life had become. His younger brother had no expectations placed on him, other than attending the Academy and becoming a ninja. He did not have to endure brutal training sessions with their father, or long, threatening lectures from the elders, or divided loyalties from Madara. He was free to be a five-year-old boy. 'And I want to keep it that way.' Itachi thought to himself.

'As long as I live up to everyone's expectations they will leave Sasuke alone. I will work as hard as that requires. I will not expose my brother to my life.' The words echoed in his mind and set a new resolve.

"Big brother, is that where father works?" Sasuke's words brought Itachi out of his reverie.

Looking up at what Sasuke was pointing at he saw they were now walking past the police station. "Yes. This is the police station."

"The crest is the same. Why is that?"

"You noticed."

"Yeah. Of course." Sasuke said defensively.

"That's because our ancestors founded the police force. They superimposed the Uchiha crest in the four pointed police star crest. The Uchiha clan has always been entrusted with the protection and security of the village. The crest is a testament to the pride the clan shows in their duty. There aren't as many Uchiha as there were in the past, but the entire first squadron is composed of Uchiha. In fact, most of the Uchiha are police." He turned his gaze from the building to look back at his brother, still perched on his back.

"The only ones who can reign in crime among shinobi are even greater shinobi." Itachi smiled as he continued talking. He was feeling a little guilty though. His explanation was extremely simplistic and he felt like he was spouting off propaganda instead of the truth. But then again, Sasuke didn't need to know the truth right now. Not for a few years, anyway.

Sasuke was surprised at his brother's words. He'd known his father was amazing, but now he had proof. "Are you going to be a policeman?"

"I…don't know." Itachi answered hesitantly. He didn't want to tell his brother that he was destined to be the chief of police, that he had no choice in the matter.

"You should! You'd be great! Then, when I grow up I'll join too! We'll be together and have lots of fun!" Sasuke was now having day-dreams of him and his brother solving crimes together.

The two brothers were silent for a few minutes until Sasuke spoke again. "My entrance ceremony is tomorrow. Father is coming. It's the first step to my dream!"

Itachi smiled, but his brother's words were becoming painful. His optimism and naivety was something he couldn't remember ever feeling. He could remember defining points in his life when the things he believed turned out to be lies, but… was he ever like Sasuke?

Approaching the Uchiha gates Itachi noticed that the usual sentry was gone, and in his place was their father. Fugaku stood up against the ten foot gate with his arms folded across his chest. He was wearing his police uniform and the look plastered on his face was one of impatience.

"You are late. What were you doing? I need to speak with you." His stern voice instantly cut into Itachi's good mood. "Let's go home." He started walking without looking to see if his sons were following him.

The meeting room was actually very inviting in the noon-day sun. The doors were left open and the late-summer breeze was the type that made people lazy. Unfortunately, the history contained in the room spoke otherwise and Itachi was instantly on guard as he folded his legs under him and knelt down on the floor. His father had taken his usual spot on a dais at the end of the room, facing the shoji doors. Sasuke, who had not been told to leave, sat nervously next to Itachi. He had only been there a couple times before, to be lectured by his father and he, like his brother, was starting to attach negative emotions to the room.

Fugaku sat cross-legged and folded his arms across his chest. The position could have been mistaken for relaxed, except for the fact that his back was straight and rigid and his face was serious. Eyeing his two somber sons for a couple minutes he finally smiled. "Itachi. You are my son. I am proud of you. Only a few months after becoming a Chuunin you are now on your way to ANBU. You are everything I expected you to be."

Itachi looked up at his father, expressionless. Of course he met expectations. He always did.

"Tomorrow's mission… I've decided to go. It is too important. Success will assure you entrance into ANBU. You realize that, do you not?" Fugaku's black eyes suddenly faded into their Sharingan forms and his expression turned serious. The implied meaning was not lost on Itachi, who remembered the meeting last winter. ANBU was a requirement, not an option.

Returning his father's gaze, Itachi felt a little insulted. This mission would succeed. He had Yurina's memory riding on it. The Hokage had said that the bounty hunter had taken out several Konoha ninja's over the last few months and Itachi knew that if they didn't get him more would die. He was also partnered with two of the best ANBU in the village, he was sure of it. Kakashi had a reputation and if Tenzou was mentored to him he must be just as amazing. "You don't need to worry about it. Anyway…" Itachi turned his head and smiled at Sasuke.

Sasuke suddenly felt shy and looked up at his father, smiling submissively, "Father, tomorrow…"

"Tomorrow's mission is important for the clan too." Fugaku ignored Sasuke, interrupting him to continue his conversation with Itachi.

Itachi couldn't stand it anymore. He decided to put his poker training into use. "I'm not going."

Fugaku blew up, "Have you gone insane! Have you forgotten how important this is! Who knows when and if another chance will come along if you refuse this one!"

"I'm going to the Ninja Academy entrance ceremony with Sasuke. You… received the notice, did you not?" Itachi smiled as he spoke. Sasuke thought the smile was kind, but Fugaku saw something else. His son was playing a game with him and he walked right into it. "It is customary for relatives to attend."

Fugaku's eyes shifted to black and he stood up. "Fine. I get it. I'll attend the ceremony tomorrow with Sasuke." He had heard that on missions Itachi was an expert at manipulating people, but that was the first time he had done it to him. The boy was truly amazing. He figured he should be angry at his son, but he was actually a little proud of him for accomplishing it. On the other hand, he realized he would have to watch his back, who knew what he would get talked into doing next.

Exiting the meeting room the two boys watched as their father walked back towards the porch. He was probably going to return to work. Itachi watched him for a minute, pleased that Sasuke would have father to himself for a few hours. It was what his brother wanted, after all.

"Go put some ice on your ankle, Sasuke." Itachi said as he walked down the hall toward his room. He needed to study some scrolls Kakashi had given him for the mission and, truth be told, Fugaku had ruined his appetite for lunch.

Sasuke watched as his brother walked away from him. The happy mood from earlier was gone, replaced by something he didn't understand. His father's words were also echoing in his mind. He complimented his older brother, called him his son and then told him how much the clan was relying on him. It was so much more than he felt he could ever be. Watching the Uchiha crest on his brother's back disappear as he entered his room Sasuke could only think that Itachi was so far away from him that it would be impossible to ever catch up.

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Next week, Itachi leaves on his mission and confronts the bounty hunter. With Kakashi and Tenzou at his side, will they be able to take him out?

Did you guess who Tenzou is? XD

Well, we're starting to catch up with manga. I'm sure you recognize the last scene xD (chpt 220)

Anyway, the dates for when Sasuke enters the academy – I'm finding conflicting ages so I decided to go with "5", since it also matches when Itachi entered ANBU. The two events were concurrent. I also didn't find a solid age for when Itachi entered ANBU. Just that it was six months after making Chuunin. So, since he was ten when he made Chuunin he could have been ANBU at ten or eleven. I went with ten to move the story along.


	43. Chapter 43 ANBU Entrance Exam

Last week Itachi was chosen to accompany Kakashi and Tenzou on an ANBU assassination mission, that would also double as his entrance exam into the black ops.

Thanks for all the reviews and favs! Some people have wondered why there aren't more reviews, well it's because it's not a romance and there's no (graphic) sex. But I'm happy with the reviews I'm getting!

Congrats to those who guessed who Tenzou is. That's right, Yamato! Chpt 317.

I was going to answer this last week and forgot (sorry)… anyway, xD is an emoticon, it basically stands for "big laugh".

Disclaimer: Pein is currently marching on Konoha so he can kidnap Naruto – then he will own the Manga instead of Kishimoto.

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Chapter 43 – The ANBU Entrance Exam

Lightening country, in September, was hot and very humid. The country was actually an isthmus that jutted out into the ocean. Open on the east to the ocean and the west to a large bay the country was wracked by frequent storms. The mountain range that ran from north to south through the center of the country would trap the clouds, causing them to dump their cargo in massive torrents of rain, wind and thunder. In other words, the weather was terrible and violent.

Camping out was nearly impossible and the three Konoha ninjas had stayed in hotels for most of their journey, only once having to hold up overnight in a small cave. The soggy, rocky ground made walking time consuming and there weren't many trees and nearly no forests so they couldn't travel that way either. The few rivers they found were small and filled with rocks as well, meaning that walking over water was just as time consuming as walking on the roads and trails.

The village their prey was holed up in was small and almost deserted. It reminded Itachi of the village he and Kisame stayed in River country. Deserted buildings lined the only street and shrubs and grass grew out of the wooden sidewalks and the rocky road. A couple old men were sitting in front of the only store playing Go, but no one else seemed to be about.

The afternoon sun was drifting in and out of the clouds as the three Konoha ninja's entered the only hotel. Itachi stepped up to the registration desk and rang a small hand-bell that was sitting on top of a book that had "Guests" written on it. He picked up the book and looked through the last written page. Of course, the man they were stalking wouldn't sign with his real name…or would he?

"Look at this!" Itachi said, shocked. Kakashi and Tenzou walked over and stared at the book, equally shocked. "He knows we're here." Itachi gave them a crooked smile.

"Shigeto Kawakami" was written in perfect penmanship on the page. However, Itachi noticed that the empty sheet on the next page had a slight dent to it. Turning it he saw another name. "Obito Godai". It took a monumental effort of self control not to react. It was the same name he had used to register at the hotel in the town outside the Feudal lord's estate. This man knew who Itachi was and was issuing him a challenge.

"What does that mean?" Tenzou asked quietly.

Kakashi was frowning. "Obito? Could be he knows Itachi is an Uchiha, or that I often visit Obito at the memorial stone. 'Godai' could refer to 'five'. But 'five' of what?"

Itachi piped up, "He's killed five Konoha ninjas."

"Yeah, true." Kakashi said nodding his head.

Once ensconced in their room the three ninja's sat at a small kotetsu table and ate their take-out dinner of rice and something with tough meat and over-cooked vegetables. Itachi was lost in his own thoughts as he shoveled food into his mouth. Shigeto knew him. That much was extremely clear. Had he been stalking him? When he attacked Yurina was he really looking for Itachi and killed her because he could still make some money off of her head? That made him feel worse. She would still be alive today if that was the case.

Shigeto would know about Akatsuki if he had been stalking him. That secret could not get out. No one but Fugaku and Mikoto knew about Itachi's involvement in that organization and if someone else found out he would have to kill them. Fugaku had not set out any such orders, but Itachi knew his duty, nonetheless. That would have to extend to Kakashi and Tenzou as well. Looking up at his two companions he saw that Kakashi was reading a novel and Tenzou was absorbed in his own thoughts. He didn't want to kill them.

"I will kill Shigeto." Itachi said plainly.

"Yes, you will. Otherwise you will fail your 'entrance exam'." Kakashi said distractedly.

"What is your plan?" Tenzou asked, giving Itachi his full attention.

"Recognizance first. I must find out where he is, how many are with him, as well as his personal attributes."

"I'll be here when you get back." Tenzou smiled at the serious-looking boy in front of him.

Itachi stood up and left the room without speaking or changing his expression. Tenzou had a curious look on his face as he watched the door close.

"What's with the kid? He clammed up after seeing that name in the register. Not that he was all that talkative before." As he spoke Tenzou stood up and grabbed one of the three rolled up futon's and spread it out on the floor. Laying down with his hands folded behind his head he turned to watch Kakashi, who was still reading.

"Itachi? He… was really close to Obito even though he was four when his cousin died. He still remembers him." Kakashi put his book down as he answered.

"Four? He shouldn't remember much of anything. I know I don't."

"We are talking about a genius with a photographic memory who grew up in a clan. Itachi does not forget much of anything." Kakashi's voice sounded sad, and Tenzou creased his brow, surprised.

"How do you know so much about him?"

"I see him around occasionally and speak to him. Also… I also have a photographic memory. Right now, Itachi believes his memory is an asset, it helps in missions. However, as he gets older he will discover the same thing I have. That not forgetting is also a burden when all you want is to forget."

Tenzou rarely heard Kakashi speak like this. He either said nothing, or was semi-cheerful. "You like the kid?"

Kakashi looked like someone had hit him in the face and Tenzou stared uncertainly at him. He didn't think it was that odd of a question.

Ten minutes passed before the white haired jounin spoke. "Let's say, it's more like I feel sorry for him. I truly don't know if I like or dislike him as a person or comrade. His father… I can't say much because his clan is close-mouthed… his father pushes him too hard and Itachi's not mentally stable from what I hear. He…" Kakashi went silent for five or six minutes, then started talking again. "I think of Obito when I see him. I don't know why. Perhaps… perhaps they are the same type of person only… only Itachi is what Obito would have become if he had been raised differently. No, that can't be. I don't think so anyway. I'm sorry, I don't know what to say." Kakashi closed his eyes and adjusted himself so he could lean back against the wall.

"I don't usually hear you talk that way. This kid really bothers you, huh? What are you going to say for the evaluation?" Tenzou was worried by his friend's uncertainty.

"The truth. Exactly what I see here. Although, I suspect his father will flay him alive if he fails the mission and doesn't get into ANBU. It's probably better to just say he passed, whether he does or not. Luckily, the kid is good enough that I won't have to lie to pass him."

Tenzou didn't answer. He was an orphan and didn't understand the politics that went along with living with a clan, or even a family for that matter. However he had seen too many of the recruits in the group he had joined with drop out or die, to agree with Kakashi. Passing Itachi just to keep his father happy was not an option for Tenzou. He thought it was more important to keep Itachi out of the hands of ANBU if he couldn't handle it. While Tenzou and Kakashi were good friends, they did not agreed on several points, and apparently this was one more thing they disagreed on.

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Itachi walked out of the hotel room and headed for the lobby. The dark hallway was illuminated by two small windows placed at either end of the hallway. The sun had just dipped below the horizon and the sky was still bright with pink and purple clouds.

Approaching the stairwell Itachi stopped and stared. There was a man standing halfway down the stairs who was average height, had long brown hair and blue eyes. He was the spitting image of the sketch Yuri and Sana had drawn back in Konoha. Leaning against the wall, his blue stirrup pants were tucked into his sandals, and his short blue shirt was accented with a fishnet shirt worn under it that peaked through the v-neck and stomach. He was holding a cloak in his left hand.

Itachi stared at the man with no emotion. However, inside his mind was exploding with questions. The cloak he was hold was black and had red clouds on it. And on his left hand was a ring. Shigeto was Akatsuki.

"So." Itachi paused before saying anything else. The man was smiling up at him and for some reason it reminded the boy of a grinning corpse. "Is Akatsuki testing me as well?"

"Sort of. I couldn't very well attack you in front of Kisame. He'd interfere. So I had to separate you." Shigeto's voice was deep and gritty, contrasting with his young-looking face. It made him sound like he should be in his sixties.

"Kisame would mind his own business. What is this really about?" Itachi found it hard to believe that his "partner" would defend him, considering what he was.

"Guess again, kid. When Leader said to test you Kisame told him to pound sand and mind his own business, that you were easily the second or third best in Akatsuki and he should show you some respect." He laughed sarcastically. "Leader agreed with Kisame and decided not to test you. I, however, disagree. And so… here I am!" He waved his arms in the air, as if to unveil his location.

"And so, here you die." Itachi spoke matter-of-factly. This entire situation was because this man was jealous of him. Five people, including his sensei had died because… Itachi cringed inwardly. He wanted to yell, to scream out his frustration, but instead he stood and stared at Shigeto.

"So, how shall we go about this?" Shigeto asked cheerfully. "Do you want to go to a field outside of town, or should we fight here in the stairwell."

Itachi activated his Sharingan. "I'll let you know after I kill you." Utilizing a transportation jutsu he disappeared. Shigeto jumped to attention, expecting Itachi to appear nearby and attack but the boy was truly gone.

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The ring on Itachi's finger glowed. His jutsu had taken him outside of the hotel and he had quickly run to a secluded spot outside of the village. Sitting down, he meditated and called Leader.

"Itachi. What is it?" The Leader's voice echoed in Itachi's mind, and contained no emotion.

"Shigeto. Tell me about him." Itachi's request was made in a calm and measured voice.

"Ah. So he went after you anyway. Humph. He's superfluous. Kill him." Leader's voice was now angry and Itachi's curiosity was piqued.

"What are his jutsu's?" Itachi asked.

"He utilizes sound and brute force. Itachi, retrieve his ring after he is dead. Contact me when you have finished and I can arrange a pick-up. It is dangerous for you to have two rings so close to Konoha."

"Yes. I will contact you in the next day or so." Itachi cut the communication. He found the conversation interesting. He was going to kill the man anyway, he didn't care what Leader said, but he wondered what he had meant by "superfluous". Sighing he closed his eyes and leaned back against a large rock. He'd probably never find out, and he didn't care anyway.

Shigeto had attacked Konoha ninja for no other reason than to get at Itachi. He couldn't get over it. Five people died because of him. And he hadn't even known about it. He had no chance to defend them. If he wasn't in Akatsuki, if Madara hadn't pulled him into that organization, those people would still be alive. He never knew being a ninja would be like this. He thought the only danger was to himself and the people he left at home when he went on missions were safe. But they weren't. His mother, father, brother, friends, and various acquaintances were vulnerable. Well, his father and mother could take out anyone, just about, but they couldn't be around to protect Sasuke or Sheeta all the time.

Itachi rubbed his eyes in frustration. His thoughts were starting to ramble. He needed to focus on Shigeto not on some unnamed threat he couldn't see. Standing up he walked back to town. He needed to edit his information so he could make a report to Tenzou and Kakashi. And it needed to be believable.

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Madara leaned back in his chair, reclining. Stretching his legs in front of him he briefly stretched then placed his hands over his chest, interlacing his gloved fingers. The room he was in was large and empty except for the three chairs. A large twenty foot wide, fifteen foot high opening was covered with large curtains. Pein sat directly in front of the curtains with Madara and Konan sitting on either side of him, facing each other. Konan was also reclining in her seat, while Pein was sitting cross-legged with his hands in his lap.

"So what brings you to Rain so soon? I expected you to remain in Mist for a while longer." Pein's voice had a hint of curiosity to it.

"Zabuza is planning a coup. I'm thinking of allowing him to live through it, yet not letting him win the battle. It will mean he will become a missing nin." Madara spoke with a pleasant tone, as if he was discussing the weather.

"What would be the purpose of that? He is not suited for Akatsuki. You also cannot pass his sword on to a new user unless he dies first." Konan was always suspicious of Madara's convoluted plans. She preferred to be direct, and she knew Pein did as well.

Madara chuckled. "After the graduation exam was changed a few years ago, Zabuza was seen as a bit of an anti-hero for 'causing' the change. If he survives a failed attempt at another social change it should discredit him."

"Hmm. You are a master as planning. I can't deny that." Konan said, giving him a small smile. "Pein?"

Pein broke out of his reverie, as if he hadn't been listening. "I spoke with Itachi last night. Shigeto went after him. Itachi had orders from Konoha to kill him. I also passed on orders to kill him. However, I do not like that the boy remains in Konoha. The orders are in synch this time, but conflicting orders are not acceptable. How will you handle it if I punish him for disobeying me? I will not treat him differently from the others." Pein's gaze held a challenge that Madara saw instantly.

"I will not interfere then. Itachi will have to deal with the conflict on his own and deal with its consequences. I need him to remain in Konoha for a little while longer. If he is to be a powerful Uchiha he must remain with his clan. Also, I am considering letting Fugaku go through with his plan without obstruction. It will make getting the nine-tails more difficult, but on the other hand, we will be able to deal directly and openly with him at that point. Fugaku as Hokage has many advantages." Madara laughed. What he didn't mention was that the disadvantages drastically outnumbered the advantages, but he was not going to reveal all his plans to his associate.

"Yes." Pein said quietly. "Having another village we could deal openly with, especially the most powerful one could come in useful. I won't complain about Itachi's predicament. However, I won't go easy on him either."

Madara laughed. "He would learn to hate you very quickly if you did."

Pein sighed inwardly. Itachi already hated him, and Madara for that matter.

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Itachi pulled on his green Chuunin vest and zipped it up, then pulled down on it to adjust it. He really wanted to rip Shigeto into a million pieces with his bare hands, but assassinations were not like that. Kakashi and Tenzou had lectured him extensively during the last week on different methods of killing with stealth and none of them had included ripping people apart. Unfortunately.

After arriving back at the hotel the previous night, Itachi had spied on Shigeto for several hours. His target did not appear to have noticed he was being watched, although he was paranoid. He constantly looked over his shoulder, ate only what he carried in his pack and used tablets to purify the water before he drank it. He also shook out and checked his clothes before putting them on, checked his room almost hourly for traps and slept with the electric light on.

Arriving back at his room, Itachi related the man's odd behavior. All three of them had laugh at the implications. The man would be fun to play with, however, it could backfire and make him dangerous and therefore more difficult to kill.

The morning sun was bright, but the clouds were converging on the horizon and the air smelled like something was burning. Kakashi told them that the lightening sometime catches things on fire and if it hits a field or a small forest (there were no large forests nearby) it could burn for days.

"It's going to rain, though." Itachi said, annoyed at the weather. It meant that if he killed the target today, they would have to leave immediately and be stuck in the rain tonight.

Kakashi and Tenzou sighed. They also realized the same thing. "Can't be helped." Kakashi said shaking his head.

"The vest fits perfect. Is it comfortable?" Kakashi changed the subject.

"Yeah. I thought they said they didn't have one my size, but the Hokage gave me three right before we left." Itachi smiled. He had been told he would have to wait for some to be custom made for him, and that it would take several weeks.

"They were mine, actually. I had saved them for some reason, I don't know why. I made Chuunin when I was a few years younger than you and was very anal about taking care of my things back then. So when I heard you didn't have any vests and would have to wait I dug them out. I sure as hell don't need them anymore. They don't fit me." He laughed.

Itachi bowed, "Thank-you"

Kakashi scratched the back of his, scrunching his eyes in a big smile that was hidden by his mask. "No problem. Just make sure you take out that killer before he gets more of our people."

"Of course." Itachi smirked.

Making his way silently up the stairs to the top floor Itachi suppressed his chakra and listened carefully. There were five rooms on the top floor, all full. His attack would have to be silent with no one else knowing he was there. Activating his Sharingan he walked carefully down the hall and stood near Shigeto's door.

Itachi's plan was simple and he hoped it was enough to catch the s-class killer. Standing outside the door he continued to hide his chakra. When Shigeto had attached Yurina and the other four ninja he had used Taijutsu of such high level that ninjutsus used to counter his attacks had no effect. This told Itachi that he would have to capture him in a Genjutsu if he was to have any chance of subduing him. In order to that he would have to move fast.

Activating his Sharingan Itachi used a transportation jutsu to enter the room. Shigeto jumped at the chakra surge and met Itachi's eyes, then laughed. Itachi quickly cast his Genjutsu.

Shigeto was sitting on his futon, which he had placed in the exact center of the room, laughing. He found it amusing that this small ten-year-old boy, genius of the Uchiha clan, would think that he could best him. After all, he was easily an S-rank ninja. Easily. No question. And, the kid was trying Genjutsu.

Itachi quickly realized that his Genjutsu was having no effect and stepped back a couple paces. He reconsidered his strategy. Shigeto used sound and brute force according to Leader. Sound techniques also utilized Genjutsu, so it wasn't surprising that he would be difficult to trick.

"Superfluous." Itachi spoke calmly.

"What?" Shigeto looked at the boy in confusion. What did that word have to do with the current predicament?

"That is what Leader said you were when I asked him about you."

Shigeto blinked in shock. Why would Leader say that? Akatsuki members killed each other all the time. "So what are you? His pet boy? No one is allowed to hurt the little kid on pain of death?" His voice was now angry.

Itachi huffed in amusement. "Either that, or you disobeyed orders and he was in a bad mood when I called him. Hard to say. I haven't actually met him in person."

"Why, you little… " Shigeto stood up and clenched his fists. He was very angry now. Knowing that he had been handed a death sentence by Akatsuki was something he couldn't deal with. Even if he killed the boy, others would come after him and there was one in particular he knew would get him. The best bounty hunter in all the shinobi nations also worked for Akatsuki.

Waves of chakra filled with killing intent started to come off of the ninja standing in front of Itachi. Quickly, the boy formed hand seals and cast another Genjutsu. This time it worked. Shigeto was so pissed off that he forgot to put up his defenses. Itachi watched as his illusion took hold and the man continued to rant and rave. He had very few options when it came to fighting. The room was small, only twenty by fifteen feet, and there were people in all the other rooms of the hotel. If he hurt any of the civilians he would fail his ANBU test.

Shigeto was standing in the middle of room yelling at the boy when a head slowly grew up out of his shoulder. Shocked he stopped ranting and looked at it. The face was that of his older brother. "You are a weakling. A disappointment. No wonder father kicked you out of the clan. There is nothing you can do to redeem yourself."

A second head formed on his other shoulder. This time it was his younger brother. "I graduated two years before you did. Of course father gave me your position in the clan. You are so clueless. You are now the youngest son in rank. Ha!"

A third head, that of his father, formed in his stomach, "You are no son of mine. I should have kicked you out years ago. The clan doesn't need you. No one does. Leave this house and never return."

A fourth head, his mothers, formed in his chest, "You aren't your father's son. I had an affair so you will never have the same abilities as your brothers. Quit trying so hard, it's pathetic to watch. Just accept that you are a looser."

Shigeto let out a growl that almost sounded like a scream. Itachi watched, fascinated, as the man in front of him pulled out his katana and started slice his shoulder, stomach and chest.

Inside Shigeto's mind he was attacking his family, killing them, cutting them off of his body. Each time he made a cut the head would come back and taunt him, and he would cut it off again. Finally, after about seven or eight cuts, Shigeto collapsed on the floor from blood loss. The Genjutsu dispelled and he looked around the room, his eyes finally landing on an expressionless boy who stood seven feet from him, near the door.

"You… I…" His clouded thoughts recognized that he had been in a Genjutsu. He had, effectively, killed himself. "You, boy. You are just like them… You think I am weak… because I am not of clan blood…"

"No, Shigeto, I think you are weak because you kill innocent people, thinking that it will make you powerful. No one with true power would call that strength." Itachi pulled out his own katana and used it to cut off the man's head. Just as he was sliding it in a plastic bag Zetsu slid out of the wall and stood in front of him.

"Ah. That was a boring fight." The black half spoke in its mechanical voice.

"It was Genjutsu, I told you that. We can't see the fight happening. Itachi, place the ring in my pocket." The white half spoke calmly.

Itachi pulled the ring off Shigeto's finger and placed in the plant man's pocket. "Can you wait a few minutes before taking the body? My teammates might want to come up and see it."

"Yes, of course, but don't take too long." White-Zetsu said calmly.

"We're hungry! Get a move on!" Black-Zetsu said impatiently.

Itachi picked up his bagged head and left the room. Zetsu disappeared back into the wall. A few minutes later Kakashi and Tenzou walked into the room, without Itachi. They glanced over the body, then used transportation jutsu's disappear. Zetsu reappeared and promptly began to "dispose" of the body.

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As Itachi had requested, Fugaku attended Sasuke's Academy entrance ceremony along with Mikoto. He was glad he did. As it turned out, the new class of students included children from some of the most powerful clans in Konoha. It was the perfect opportunity to do some networking and Fugaku took full advantage of it. It was also an opportunity to see what Sasuke's competition would be.

Hiashi Hyuuga's daughter and heir would be in Sasuke's class as would children from the Nara, Yamanaka, Aburame, Inuzuka, Akimichi, and Haruno clans. The Fourth's son Naruto would also be starting that year.

Sasuke followed Fugaku around and listened attentively to every conversation. He made no effort to speak with any of his new classmates. The boy's sudden increase in attentiveness and lack of fidgeting caught Fugaku a little off guard. Sasuke never stood still for more than a few seconds, yet here he was standing stock still for every ten or fifteen minute conversation he had with several of the other parents. He was impressed, but as an Uchiha it was expected.

Mikoto watched as Sasuke followed his father around and smiled. He really looked up to Fugaku, unlike Itachi who had long ago seen too much of his father's bad traits to see him as anything other than a man to watch out for. Yet, she also noticed that Fugaku said very little to his son. He did make sure the boy got some cookies and milk, however, and that made Mikoto's smile grow even bigger.

At the end of the day when they returned to the house Sasuke let out a big sigh.

"Was it that stressful, Sasuke?" Fugaku laughed at the serious look on his five-year-old son's face.

"No!" Sasuke said a little too fast.

Fugaku smirked and patted the boy on the head as he walked past him.

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The Hokage listened patiently to Itachi as he related his mission report. The boy's use of Genjutsu was very advanced. He had failed in his first attempt, then used anger to drop the targets defenses and then tried again and succeeded. The fact was, the target was an S-class ninja and Itachi had taken him out as if he was just another Chuunin. Had the recognizance mission classified him incorrectly?

Sighing, Sarutobi watched Itachi standing calmly at attention. He was sure the classification was correct. Without Genjutsu, taking the man down would have been extremely difficult. Paranoid people were difficult to catch unawares. He had to admit, only Tenzou, Kakashi and Itachi would have been able to accomplish it. Tenzou with his wood jutsu, and Kakashi and Itachi with their Sharingans.

"Danzou, what do you think?" Sarutobi spoke to the old man who had been sitting on a couch on the side of the room.

Danzou stood up and looked at the Uchiha. "He's perfect." He paused as Sarutobi nodded once and sat back in his chair. Danzou continued in a stern voice, "Itachi. You will be part of the ANBU recruits that will enter on December 1st. It is a special training program I have created, called Root. You will be amongst the first people to go through it. Until then, I expect you to train hard. Mental and Physical discipline will be the primary focus. As the time approaches I will send you more information."

"Yes. I will endeavor to meet your expectations and exceed them." Itachi said politely as he bowed.

'You already have.' Danzou said to himself, pleased that he finally had an Uchiha in his grasp. And not just any Uchiha, but possibly the most talented genius since Madara himself.

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Next week: Itachi is now an ANBU black ops. But his training is nothing to be laughed at.

Please review!


	44. Chapter 44 The Boy Who Was Never a Boy

Chapter 44 – Second attempt

In the previous chapter Itachi passed his ANBU entrance exam with flying colors and was accepted into the Root training program.

Thanks for all the reviews and fav's!

The question is: will I be writing a story with Sasuke and Naruto? The answer is, sort of… The pseudo sequel to this story will be an AU where Fugaku succeeds in his coup to take over Konoha and Itachi fails to kills the clan (he tries, but fails). It will span about ten or so years, **Itachi is the main focus**, but of course Sasuke will be older and have a bigger part. Fugaku will be protecting Naruto from Madara so Sasuke and Sakura will be drawn into that as well. Naruto's life will be much more complicated because of the coup, Sasuke will be suffering from "jealous little brother" syndrome and still runs away to be with Orochimaru (not sure why yet) and Sakura is caught in the middle trying to keep the peace. Jiraiya and Tsunade are in it too. I'm still working on the plot but I'm pretty excited about it, which is why this description is so long… xD

The newest databook is out – I've been monitoring some threads to see if I can get more info… I'd like to find out more about Shisui, Madara, Itachi and the massacre (sounds like the name of a punk band…)

Sorry for the long A/N this week – I think I'm bored xD

Disclaimer – Kishimoto thinks he owns Naruto, and he's probably right about that, too.

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Chapter 44 – The Boy Who Was Never a Boy

"You are my son. Six months after making Chuunin, here you are ready to enter ANBU." Fugaku looked at his eldest son with pride. It was December 1st and Itachi was now an ANBU enrolled in Danzou's new Root training division.

Itachi looked at his father, then nodded his head once to acknowledge the comment. He was confident in his abilities, but for some reason he was feeling a little nervous. ANBU was something he had dreamed of since he was four years old and had watched Madara kill an operative in front of him. The mask had fascinated him and he had asked if he could keep it. Of course, he had been told he would have to earn his own.

"What time will you be home, Itachi?" Sasuke was standing outside the meeting room as Itachi and Fugaku walked out into the hall.

"I don't know, Sasuke." Itachi smiled at his brother, then walked out of the house. He knew he was going to be entering a training program, but he didn't know what kind of training it was going to be. Root was a new organization within ANBU and Itachi and fourteen other recruits were the first ones to join.

The ANBU headquarters was located behind the Hokage tower. Since most of it was underground, the building itself gave the appearance of a generic three story, rounded office building. Entering the building a woman in an ANBU outfit with a cow's mask directed Itachi to a room on the second floor.

"Itachi! Wait up!" He turned around and saw Yuri walking through the door. She was also selected for the program. Sana, however, had finally decided to become a teacher and was enrolled in a training program for Academy instructors. "I was so excited I could barely sleep last night. What masks do you think we'll get? I would love to get a cat mask, but the cat isn't part of the zodiac so I probably won't."

Itachi smiled. Yuri was actually quite nervous, and was hiding it by claiming to be excited and talking a lot. He answered her question as they walked up a narrow staircase, "I like all the masks, I guess. I wonder if we get them today, or if we have to wait for training to end."

"Any idea how long it will last?" Yuri asked quietly.

"None at all."

The room they entered was about the size of a regular classroom. The student area was situated stadium-style with each row one foot higher than the previous row. The desks were nothing more than narrow wooden tables with a long wooden bench instead of chairs. There were no windows, instead all four walls were lined with blackboards. The room itself was spotless and had a subtle disinfectant smell. Itachi and Yuri took seats in the second row and sat quietly.

Danzou put in an appearance when all fifteen recruits were assembled. He stood calmly in front of the room. His appearance was that of a frail man, one eye bandaged, one arm crippled and wrapped firmly against his torso (or perhaps even missing) and he walked slowly with his cane. However, the power he wielded inside the village and over the Hokage was anything but frail.

In a calm and measured voice Danzou addressed the recruits. "Today you are members of Root. You are the roots that collect the water and nutrients to feet the great tree of Konoha. You are the roots that protect the tree from disease and heal it. The training program you are about to begin is new, you are the first to go through it. Based on your progress it will be revised for future recruits." He paused and looked at the serious faces staring back at him. Itachi was the youngest at ten-years-old and a Jounin was the oldest at twenty-three. It was quite an age range, but he was curious about who would handle the training better, a child or an adult.

"Today you will receive your tattoos, uniforms and masks. You will also receive your training schedules. After that we will begin instruction for the rest of the day. I have the highest of expectations for you all. However, I must remind you that if you wish to quit you may. Do not continue if you feel you cannot handle it. As you have heard the traditional ANBU training had a twenty-five percent death rate. I do not want to see that in Root. Pride has killed more people than blades. Remember that." He stepped aside and waved his hand. A man in an ANBU mask walked into the room and stood about six feet from Danzou.

"This man will take you to the medic area for your tattoos. Please follow him." Danzou walked out of the room. Itachi looked at the ANBU standing in front of them. He had a "boar" mask on and was very tall and muscular, with black hair and very pale skin.

The ANBU looked at the recruits, then spoke in a hoarse voice. "Follow me. We will be going to two different medic facilities, one for the girls and one for the boys."

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"Take your shirt off and sit on the stool." The ANBU, this one wearing a tiger mask, used a lever to raise the stool so that Itachi was a comfortable height for him to work with. There were four medics in the room and everyone was taking turns.

Itachi sat calmly as the tattoo was etched into his skin, although he had to admit it did hurt a lot. He wasn't going to let anyone know that though.

"Why don't you use a sealing jutsu to give us our tattoos?" Itachi finally asked.

"It takes too much chakra to do a seal. It's more efficient to do it this way." The tiger masked ANBU continued to use a large silver tool to poke holes in Itachi's arm and inject ink. Blood was mixing with the ink and every so often the man would wipe it away. When he finished he focused chakra into his hand and placed it over the tattoo. Itachi felt warmth entering the area under the new tattoo. The bleeding stopped and the skin, which was red and slightly swollen was now normal and completely healed.

The upper half of Itachi's left arm now sported the signature mark of his new position. "You need to go to room twenty-five, a few doors down, and pick up your clothes." The ANBU began cleaning up his workstation, preparing for the next recruit.

As Itachi started to leave the room he spotted a mirror and walked over. Looking at his arm in the mirror he still thought he looked like a scrawny little kid, but the tattoo did add something to his appearance. He pulled his shirt back over his head and walked down the hall. There was no sound coming from any of the other rooms. They were either empty or soundproofing jutsus were being used to conceal any goings-on.

Room twenty-five was, once again, the size of a regular classroom. However, it had no desks in it and the floor was flat instead of tiered. Six five-foot long tables were arranged side by side in two rows. Each table contained an article of clothing or gear. Itachi was instructed to remove his pants and shirt and wait in line. When his turn finally came he walked forward. At each table an ANBU would pull out a package with the boy's name on it and open it. Itachi would then be shown the correct way to wear the item.

When the arm guards were presented, Itachi couldn't help but think how uncomfortable they seemed. "They're not as bad as they look." The ANBU smiled at him. None of the ANBU in the room were wearing masks.

Itachi smiled back. "Are you a mind reader?"

The man laughed. "Nah. I just thought the same thing when I joined." He showed Itachi how to strap them to his arms. "We had to have all your gear special made since you're so small. They did a good job getting it done quickly."

Itachi smirked at that. He figured that he would probably have a couple years of custom made gear at this rate.

"You have three more full outfits in one of the packages against that wall. Take it home with you and keep it safe. You don't have to hide it, but don't hang it out in plain sight either." The ANBU turned away from him to help the next person in line.

Walking to the wall Itachi quickly found his package and picked it up. Realizing it was a backpack he slung his arm through one strap. "Where do I go next?" He asked the ANBU standing by the door.

"Return to the classroom you were in first."

Yuri was already there when he walked in. The girls had finished first since there were only four of them. She was sitting back in her chair, half asleep. He noticed that her tattoo was on her right arm and remembered that men and women were tattooed on different arms for some reason. He sat next to her and began to meditate.

An hour or so later all the recruits were back in the room. A cart with box lunches had come and gone and everyone was fed and ready for whatever came next. Yuri was dying of curiosity over what mask she would get and was passing the time drawing plants on the back of a piece of paper she had found in her backpack. Itachi decided to take her lead and, finding his own paper began to draw, in great detail, the Hokage tower.

Danzou materialized at the front of the room via a transportation jutsu and instantly everyone directed their attention at him. He looked over the recruits with a measured eye, seeing that some had been passing the time meditating, others talking and two were… drawing? Curious he walked forward a few paces and looked at Yuri and Itachi's papers.

"Remarkably detailed. The plants are perfectly formed and the Hokage tower looks like a photograph. As expected of Yurina's scroll-seekers." Yuri and Itachi nodded their heads in recognition of his praise, not knowing what else to say. Everyone looked over at the pair, also curious.

A masked ANBU, this time a woman, entered the room carrying a box. Danzou nodded to her and she set her box down and reached into it, pulling out a smaller box. She then read off a name, "Itachi Uchiha."

Itachi stood up and walked to the front of the room. She gave him the box. Sitting back down he opened it. It was a mask. The "rat". Smiling, he found it an interesting choice as he remembered the story of how the zodiac was formed.

_A long time ago the Jade Emperor entrusted Rat to invite various animals to a banquet. He planned to name the zodiac during the feast and he wanted all the animals that would be part of it to be in attendance. The Rat, who liked to play tricks, decided to fool his friend Cat. He told Cat that the banquet would be in two days, instead of one day. While all the other animals feasted on great food and laughed and talked, Cat slept looking forward to the banquet that he believed had yet to come. The Jade Emperor was so upset Cat had not attended that he banished him forever from the zodiac._

While it bothered him that the rat had lied to his friend the cat, he still couldn't deny that the rat's trickster abilities were a good match for his Genjutsu and Sharingan talent.

The mask itself was made of porcelain and painted white with stylized red markings that made it look like a rat. Including the nose, eyes, and whiskers. The inside of the mask was smooth and there were eyeholes as well as several smaller almost invisible holes around the nose, no doubt to aid breathing. He looked closely at the edges, but he could not figure out how it would fit over his face without falling off. There were no strings to tie and it had no hooks to attach it to his forehead protector.

"I got a horse!" Yuri said happily. Itachi found that fitting as well. The "horse" was said to be cheerful and stubborn. "How do we put them on?"

Danzou was watching his students look over their new masks, giving them a small smile. He watched Itachi the closest. Danzou had tried to match the animal to the person and could think of nothing but a rat when he looked at the boy. He was pleased that the boy accepted his selection.

"The masks have a jutsu on them." The woman who had passed them out took her mask off. "They automatically attach to the side of your face when you put them on. They also do not obstruct breathing, nor do they interfere with sweating so you won't get overheated in hot weather." She put her mask back on to demonstrate. Everyone in the room followed her lead.

Upon putting on his mask Itachi noticed that his vision was not impaired the way it was when he wore carnival masks. He could see normally. He also noticed, when he shook his head, that it did not come loose.

"You will wear your masks during your training and missions. They are not to come off unless you are specifically instructed to remove them." And with those words the woman picked up the empty box and left the room.

Danzou spoke again, this time his voice was stern. "In the fifth sublevel of this building you will find the Root training facility. It is composed of several classrooms, an arena for sparring, and your lockers, as well a barracks should the occasion call for it. You will assemble in the arena every morning at 6am in full ANBU gear. Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be provided. You will be excused at 8pm. Training will last three months, until February 28th. At that time you will be eligible to be called for ANBU missions. These missions will come from me. However, if the Hokage calls you for a mission you may _not_ refuse it. Training is seven days a week with excuses provided only for illness or injury or family emergencies on a case by case basis. Are there any questions?"

"So what will we be learning?" An older teenage boy raised his hand and asked hesitantly.

"There are standard ANBU protocols and jutsus you must be made familiar with. You must also practice your teamwork, hone your personal jutsus, and learn discipline without emotion. That is just the beginning. A standard ANBU apprenticeship lasts two years. However, you will be evaluated the entire three months as well as after it ends. When you reach an acceptable level the apprenticeship will end and you will be qualified for higher level missions."

Danzou paused and looked over the group again. "Any more questions?" No one spoke. "Then move down to the training area, room E8. You have fifteen minutes to get there. Use the stairs on the east end of the building. The handsigns to activate the door to the stairway are boar, monkey, cow, monkey, horse, sheep. Only one person at a time is allowed through the door. If more than one passes through a transportation jutsu will send you outside the building."

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Training was brutal, that much Itachi had figured out by the end of the first week. He was studying various new jutsus, practicing the ones he was already expert at, and everyone was training weights to build up their muscles. They were also learning how to fight with swords. The others had been given swords, but somehow Danzou had known that Itachi had his own sword and hadn't issued him one. Something Itachi was grateful for, since he had great appreciation for his own sword already.

The long days and short nights ate away at the class and by the end of the first month there were only ten recruits left. Five had dropped out, one of those was transferred into the "normal" ANBU training program (which took two years) and the other four withdrew completely. Itachi and Yuri were used to long training sessions. Fugaku and Yuri's uncle had been driving their charges hard since they were young so while the other's in the program were laying on the ground panting, Itachi and Yuri would be ready for another round of sparring.

The weight training was proving to be effective, as far as Itachi was concerned. He was starting to build up his arm, torso and leg muscles and after two months he thought he looked less like a scrawny little kid and more like an ANBU. Albeit a short and skinny ANBU with slight bulges in his arms where the muscles were.

At the end of three months only seven recruits remained. One had died, three were transferred into the regular ANBU training program and the rest quit. The boy who died had trained too hard and his heart had stopped. While the medics were able to revive him and get him to the hospital the damage was too great and he died a few hours later.

During the three months of training Itachi had spent nearly all his waking hours in the presence of Danzou and the other recruits. There were five other instructors, but Danzou attended every class even if all he did was sit and listen.

Every morning the recruits gathered in the arena and recited a mantra taught to them by Danzou as he listened.

_Root is the roots of the great tree of Konoha_

_Root is the foundation that holds up the building_

_Never drop your guard_

_Emotion leads to hate_

_Hate leads to conflict_

_Hate leads to war_

_In Root you have no name_

_In Root you have no feelings_

_In Root you have no past_

_In Root you have no future_

_In Root all that exists is the mission_

The recruits then experienced several hours of training in which the tenets of the morning mantra were drilled into their heads. No names were used, no emotions were shown. They were taught to express themselves using only present tense. They did not look any further than the current task.

Danzou also spent time everyday drilling his recruits with his own version of what Itachi secretly termed "militant peace". The elderly man was a proponent of peace at any cost. He did not want to see Konoha fall into war, but he did not want to surrender either. He believed that those who threatened the great tree of Konoha should be dealt with quickly, efficiently, and in complete secrecy so that the peaceful citizens who made there home in the branches could remain innocent of any threat.

Itachi sat through many lectures that described exactly what those threats consisted of and how and why they were considered threats. The most difficult lessons of all were those that brought back memories of his trek through the valley of corpses in Water country. He tried to suppress the memory, but he couldn't. It still haunted his dreams.

"Attack the leader and kill him and you will be free from oppression. That is the battle cry of the rebel who calls himself the revolutionary. However, the top protects itself with the bottom. Meaning that to get to the leader you must go through other ninja and civilians first. Thousands die so the 'revolutionary' can kill the leader. But once dead then what? The 'revolutionary' sets himself up as the new leader, but the protectors of the previous leader are now the new rebels and must be hunted down and killed. Thousands more die. The relatives, friends and comrades of those that have been killed rise up to become rebels as well, exacting their vengeance. Thousands more die.

"So what exactly has been accomplished? The 'revolutionary' spends so much time defending himself and his regime that social change takes a back burner or is ignored altogether in favor of years and years of war.

"When does it end? Never. After all, where do you think our 'revolutionary' came from? He was once one of the rebels he now fights. True change is accomplished from within utilizing and modifying the laws and structure already in place. Strengthening the citizens and protecting them so they can be defended from threats. That is why we exist. That is the purpose of Root."

Danzou's circular logic was simplistic, but the more Itachi heard it the more it made sense and the more it invaded his dreams. His nightmares once again became nightly occurrences as his father walked through a village of corpses and his mother walked behind him holding Sasuke's hand. His old dreams also returned. The worst was the one where he watched, helpless, as his teenage brother cried over the bodies of a blond boy and pink haired girl.

Finally, at the end of the training, Danzou confronted Itachi and pulled him aside in his office. Itachi knew something was wrong, but kept his face expressionless. He instead took a quick glance of the small, poorly lit office as he folded his legs underneath him and sat down. The elder was very traditional and used a desk that one kneeled in front of instead of the western style furniture the rest of Konoha used. There were also no personal items in the room other than a small tea set, jug of water and hotplate. The minimalist interior fit the man perfectly and Itachi would have been surprised to see otherwise.

"Itachi, it comes to my attention that you are affected by my teachings. You continue to have nightmares, even though you have successfully completed the training. I am willing to overlook this, as I believe it is a side effect of the Sharingan, despite what your father has told you." Danzou called the boy by his name, causing Itachi to register a small amount of shock. During the training he had only been referred to as "Rat".

Itachi looked straight at Danzou, but didn't respond. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to say. Besides, how did he know he was having nightmares, and that his father had told him they were not caused by the Sharingan? In fact, that conversation had happened years ago.

"Tell me your dreams, Itachi. Then perhaps we can work through this." Danzou's offer of personal help was a complete and utter shock but Itachi did not register any surprise. However, he did not feel like revealing something that personal and kept his mouth shut.

Danzou guessed, correctly, why Itachi did not speak. "Nothing will leave this office. I will not hold it against you. You have graduated from the training and tomorrow you will be eligible for any upcoming missions. Now, tell me what you dream at night that makes a trained assassin awaken in fear."

Itachi looked down at the floor. Perhaps he could trust him? Perhaps he could find a way to help him suppress the dreams? However, Fugaku would not want him revealing something like this to an outsider. The boy sighed, then started talking. His voice was even and carefully controlled.

"I am walking through Konoha. Everyone is dead." He paused for a couple minutes, but Danzou was silent and did not interrupt. "Sasuke, my younger brother, is in front of me. He's older, a teenager. He is kneeling next to a dead boy and girl, also teenagers, and crying, blaming himself for their deaths. I want to help him so I try to call out to him, to touch him, but I can't. I then realize that I'm dead. I then see my parents behind Sasuke. They are sad and try also to reach out to him, but they are also dead. They then look at me and I can see in their eyes…they are accusing me…they are mad because I am dead and I should be alive to help Sasuke." He stopped speaking, hoping Danzou would not ask to hear any of his other dreams.

Danzou was quiet for a few minutes as Itachi continued to look at the floor. "Itachi, who killed the citizens of Konoha? Was it… Sasuke? Is that why he is crying?"

Itachi, despite his training jerked his neck up so fast that Danzou was a little surprised at the reaction. He had never thought of that, never considered it. Sasuke would never do that! Never in a million years! It was his father that was going to kill…everyone… Itachi's face went white and he clenched his fists tightly against his thighs.

"Threats come from everywhere, Itachi. They are not limited to the 'bad guys', as you have learned." Danzou smirked inwardly at the double meaning in his sentence. He wondered if Itachi had caught it as well. He was sure he had. "It is clear that something about Sasuke has you worried. It may be a premonition or perhaps something you fear may happen because of the actions of someone else. Your father, yourself, someone else… who knows?" He watched as Itachi closed his eyes, trying hard to keep himself under control. He had to play his cards carefully. Itachi was extremely bright and extremely powerful. Danzou needed him to be an ally, not an enemy. He had worked hard to get an Uchiha under his control and he did not want that to go to waste.

"Itachi, you are a boy who does not like war. However, you are also a boy who does enjoy fighting those who are your equal. You want to protect the weak and at the same time gain power. You are someone who could, in time, become Hokage. Easily. However, Uchiha is a name that will never be considered for the position because of the past. Sarutobi would like to name you as the Fifth, he has said as much, but the council will never allow it. You must come to terms with this. In fact, I sense it is not something you would want. Am I right?"

Itachi was slightly horrified by the revelation and nodded his head, not trusting himself to speak. He would _never_ want such a position. There was no way he could even begin to accomplish the tasks involved in the day to day operations of the job.

"Keep your eyes open, Itachi. Keep watch. Tell me what you see. By doing this, you will be able rid yourself of these dreams. Rid yourself of the threat and peace will rule your heart and mind."

Itachi opened his eyes slowly, revealing his Sharingan. He knew what Danzou was asking him to do. He understood completely. Spy on his clan, his family, but most of all, his father. In the name of peace.

Would the nightmares really go away if he did this? It sounded too good to be true. But… was it really a nightmare if it came true? If the village turned into that valley of corpses?

"I will keep my eyes open, master Danzou." The words were uttered of their own volition and with a simple sentence spoken underground, in the dark, Itachi became a double-agent. Spying on ANBU for the Uchiha, and spying on Uchiha for ANBU.

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Next week: Fugaku starts to notice changes in Itachi, and Itachi has a heart to heart conversation with Shisui that leaves him worried about his friend's sanity.

Just to make it clear – Itachi hasn't told Danzou what his father is planning. At this point he has only agreed to keep watch.

Please review!


	45. Chapter 45 Reality Check

**Last week Itachi joined ANBU and completed the training in the ROOT division.**

**Thanks for all the reviews! **

**Two more questions (questions are good, they let me know how well I'm explaining things, or if I forgot some aspect of the plot):**

**About Itachi's dream where Sasuke is crying over Naruto and Sakura's bodies… The dream is a manifestation of Itachi's fear of war and how it will affect the person he cares about most – Sasuke. Part of the idea for the dream came from the Manga with Sasuke not returning to Konoha right away, and part from Itachi blaming himself for his brother's predicament. I can't say too much because more will be explained later in the story. **

**Another question, this one about Uncle. Let's see… when Yuri was very young she was one of a handful of people who survived when her clan was massacred. Yet for some reason she was the only one who showed up in Konoha. They took her in as a talented orphan and placed her in the Academy. Her Uncle showed up later to claim her as his dependent. He is very strict and paranoid, and probably unhinged from seeing his clan destroyed. Yuri is all he has left and basically he was being nice at the Chuunin exams because not all mean people are mean all the time and he was proud of her performance. However, in a few chapters Itachi will accidentally stumble onto Uncle's secret, and well, Uncle isn't going to be too happy about that.**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto, and Naruto owns a first edition print of Pervy Sage's first book (Kakashi is going to be sooo jealous – even if it isn't porn)**

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**Chapter 45 - Reality Check**

Fugaku noticed the change. Slowly but surely, as the ANBU training progressed, Itachi was drawing into himself. He was sure he was the only one who noticed, though, with the possible exception of Mikoto who continued to remain cheerful and help the boy whenever possible.

Itachi had described the training program to Fugaku in detail. The clan chief had considered that it might be a form of brainwashing. However, while several elements were present, many others weren't. For example, the trainees were allowed to return home at night which, in traditional brainwashing, would never be allowed to happen. Perhaps Danzou was so arrogant that he believed it would make no difference.

Looking out the window in his office at the police station he saw Itachi talking to Sheeta and Aya. He seemed normal, even laughing once. Shisui walked out of the Police station and spoke with them for a minute before walking off to begin his patrol duties. He had patted Itachi on the back a couple times before leaving and Itachi had smiled. They were still close friends, despite the separation caused by their different duties.

Shisui had been gone almost the entire time Itachi was training. Volunteering for back to back missions he had quickly grown to become one of the most powerful ninja's in the clan. At thirteen that was quite an accomplishment. He had perfected his "flicker" technique of teleportation, a type of transportation jutsu, and could successfully avoid and inflict injuries faster than even a Sharingan eye could see.

However powerful Shisui was, though, Fugaku had other plans for him. Sighing in frustration, he turned away from the window. "It's almost time, Shisui. I am sorry, but it has to be done."

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"I ran into your mad bomber in Stone village, Itachi." It was early April and Shisui had just returned from a prisoner exchange mission in Earth country and he and Itachi were sitting by the lake catching up on each others gossip.

"Who?" Itachi's mind went blank for a minute.

"You know, blond kid, wears a pony-tail, tongues in his hands, one of _his_ students? I believe you met him once?" Shisui smiled as Itachi smirked in recognition, and at the disguised mention of Madara.

"Oh. _Him_. What's he up to?" Itachi really didn't care, but he was mildly curious.

"He's a missing nin now, working for terrorist cells in Earth country. He was in the village hidden in the Stones and blew up a couple buildings in the business district. Apparently when he actually left the village a few months ago he blew up the Kage's tower. Bastard lived, though. The Kage, that is."

"Hn." Itachi wondered what Madara thought of that.

"How's ANBU treating you?" Shisui started to throw rocks into the lake.

"Okay. I've had five missions so far. Picking up traitors to Konoha." Itachi was quite pleased with his work in the organization so far. In fact, one of the traitors was plotting to kill the Daimyou and had such a good plan that it would have worked. He had taken the man down himself, earning much praise from Danzou and the Hokage.

"Danzou doesn't bother you?" Shisui remembered how Danzou had twisted the truth when his sensei had been caught running missions not assigned by the Hokage, thus forcing the boy to quit being a ninja. He had never forgiven the elderly man for that.

"No. He is quite pleasant around me. We talk occasionally. He is dedicated to protecting the village and people inside it." Itachi had, actually, experienced no problems at all with Danzou and wondered if his father had pulled an attitude or something and exaggerated or worsened a situation that could have been resolved peacefully. He had been with Danzou for four months now and had seen nothing of what Fugaku or Shisui said he was.

"Where is he, Itachi?" Shisui lowered his voice.

"Who? Danzou? I think he lives in the ANBU HQ. Why?" The question made no sense to Itachi.

"Not him. My _sensei_." The last word was laced with sarcasm.

"I haven't seen him. You are supposed to stay away from him." Itachi reminded his cousin, and gave him a worried glance.

Shisui sighed. The man had gone to ground. No one had seen hide nor hair of him. "Find out."

"No." Itachi could see no reason for the request.

"What? Who are you to tell me that?" Shisui was getting mad.

"Control yourself, Shisui." Itachi said calmly. "Emotion leads to conflict."

Shisui looked at Itachi like he had grown a second head, but Itachi returned his gaze with an emotionless face. Not knowing what else to do Shisui stood up and left.

Itachi watched as his friend walked away. He felt annoyance at his cousin's lack of control. Shisui was supposed to be one of the best ninja's in the clan, according to Fugaku, but he would never surpass him if he continued to wear his heart on his sleeve. There was much more at stake here than playing around at being a ninja. He was supposed to be responsible for protecting the clan and the village.

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The next morning Itachi was in his bedroom reading a book he had received as a birthday gift from Sheeta when he heard a disturbance in the entryway. He walked out of his room and down the hall to see his father and mother trying to calm down Rumiko, Sheeta and Aya. The two young girls were wiping their eyes and Rumiko was madder than Itachi had ever seen her. In fact, he quickly realized that he had never seen her loose her temper before.

"What's going on here?" Itachi's calm voice made everyone stop talking and look at him.

"Good. You're here. This is perhaps a problem that would be better for you to handle. Let's go into the meeting room and discuss it instead of standing here." Fugaku lead everyone to the meeting room and they all sat down on the tatami mat. Fugaku and Mikoto sat at the front on the dais, Itachi sat facing him, then Rumiko behind him and to the right and in the back near the door Sheeta and Aya sat so close to each other that their sides were pressed together.

Fugaku waited a couple minutes and watched as Rumiko sat with her eyes closed, calming herself. When he saw that her breathing was back to normal he asked her to explain what had happened.

"We were coming back from morning training last week when the three ANBU assigned to tail us started to make inappropriate comments. They were saying that they wanted to… do things to us and because we were in the woods they could get away with it. They said we wouldn't be able to defend ourselves because no one believes anything an Uchiha says. They said they would take the little girls first, then me. I… I got mad and beat the crap out of them." She stopped and breathed deeply before continuing. "This morning I got a notice from the Hokage saying that I am to be tried for an unprovoked attack on ANBU personnel and then report for two years incarceration in the prison." She took in a few more deep breaths. "What's the bloody point of a trial if they already have me reporting to jail! It isn't fair! They started it! They were going to attack us!"

Itachi couldn't believe what he had just heard. ANBU were doing things like that? And they got away with it? How? And how many other people had those three gotten away with attacking?

Standing up, Itachi looked out of the window by the sliding doors. "I'll take care of it right now." He walked out before anyone could say anything. He noticed that Sheeta and Aya were trying very hard to control their emotions, and both were looking at the floor. He knew for a fact that while they could easily defeat most other ninja's their age, they were not strong enough to fight an ANBU. If Rumiko hadn't been there…

"Sheeta belongs to me, and Aya to Shisui. No one else." He whispered to himself as he walked to the ANBU building. He was able to calm himself down and waited patiently after making a request to speak with Danzou. He didn't have to wait long, and soon he was in the elder's office, repeating what Rumiko had told him earlier.

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Danzou was not amused. "This is to be expected from the Hokage's lax training methods. This is why I founded Root. Itachi, those three are traitors. Pure and simple. I will deal with it now. You may inform your clanswomen that they are safe. I believe one of them is your fiancé?"

"Sheeta and I are betrothed, yes."

"So you feel a special connection to her. She is your friend. Your confidant." Danzou's voice was calm.

"I… yes." He felt no reservations about admitting his relationship to Danzou.

"You must not let those feelings overwhelm you. You saw what happened when Rumiko did. If she had just ignored the taunting they may have just backed off and shut up eventually. Until they attacked there was no reason for her to attack."

Itachi wasn't so sure about that. "But what about the comments they were making? What if they didn't attack this time because Rumiko was there, and next time when the girls were alone they did?"

"She should have filed a complaint, then provided protection to ensure the girls were not left alone until it was resolved. Assuming that the Hokage would have ignored it also, then I would be intervening on your behalf to settle a complaint instead of an assault. I must tell you, truthfully, Uchiha are not trusted right now. You realize that. I'm sure your father has explained his side of it to you?" Danzou raised his eyebrow and looked closely at the boy in front of him.

Itachi nodded once, "Yes. So Rumiko could still be in trouble?"

"Possible. I'll do what I can to get her off. But… if you do something to earn the Hokage's trust it would help a lot." Danzou stopped talking and let the quiet settle around them. He watched as the boy struggled to find something to say.

Itachi was confused. What could he say that would earn any level of trust from the Hokage? He thought about what his father had said when ANBU was first assigned to follow them, and suddenly he realized that he did have something to say. Something that the Hokage already knew, but Danzou might not. However, it could cause problems with a man he would rather not piss off. On the other hand, how would he find out?

"The…" Itachi paused, rethinking his decision.

"You are protected Itachi. You are my subordinate and I will not take your loyalty lightly." The man's words were kind, and gave Itachi the strength to keep talking.

"The Kyuubi attack was not orchestrated by the Uchiha. They had nothing to do with it. They protected the village and tried to protect the Fourth by not involving him."

"Who was behind it?" Danzou's voice was quiet.

"Madara Uchiha. The old jinchuuriki was dying. He orchestrated the birth of a baby, Sasuke, so he could re-seal the demon in a new body. The Fourth used his son instead after father chased away Madara by killing the man who was supposed to do the sealing." Itachi gulped and looked down at the floor, hardly daring to breath. He had spoken of something that was never supposed to be repeated outside the clan. Even within the village the issue of the sealing was classified and no one was allowed to mention it.

Danzou gave the boy a small smile. He already knew all that because the Hokage had told him years ago. However, he decided to use it as a sign of trust and pretend he didn't know. "That is very interesting, Itachi. They defended the village and tried to protect the Fourth. I daresay it would have worked if the pigheaded old… I mean young… bastard had of backed off and let them. So what was Fugaku's plan if he wasn't going to seal the Kyuubi in his son?"

"I don't know that part. I never thought about it before either."

"If he had allowed the sealing to take place then killed the child the Kyuubi would probably have died also." Danzou's words made Itachi look up at him in shock.

"That would explain…" Itachi spoke before thinking, then blinked twice, surprised that he would do such a thing.

"Explain what?"

"Mother… mother had a falling out with father and even left him for a while. I thought it was all my fault. And father's bad temper. But if Sasuke's life was involved it would be…" He sighed.

'So the boy's parents don't get along.' Danzou said to himself. He already knew that Fugaku had beaten his wife up on several occasions, but not recently. In fact, the clan leader's temper seemed to have dissipated somewhat in recent years.

"Thank-you Itachi. I know it was difficult to say, but I am grateful to hear that the Fourth's welfare was considered in such high regard by the Uchiha. It eases my heart some. I will speak with the Hokage. I have a meeting with him in a couple hours so perhaps I can have an answer for you by tonight."

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Returning home Itachi shut himself in his bedroom and laid down on his bed, staring at the ceiling. Danzou had called the regular ANBU training deficient. He wondered what the differences were. His own training had been strenuous, with a huge emphasis on suppression of emotions and mission above self.

They had also been taught that a properly orchestrated surgical strike would take out the target without any fallout. However, in order to successfully follow through with such a plan the ninja had to be strong enough to actually carry it out. Itachi already knew he was powerful. His chakra levels had doubled several times in the last few years and his knowledge of Genjutsu and Ninjutsu, as well as his skill with Taijutsu was topnotch. There were, literally, very few people in Konoha who could match him at this point.

Smiling, he remembered Danzou telling him that he could have been Hokage one day. He truly did not want such a position, but still… it was the ultimate acknowledgement of his abilities. It was something no one else in his clan had ever been considered for. Even Madara's own people failed to support his attempt to become Hokage.

That evening Rumiko received word from the Hokage's office that not only was she exonerated of all charges, but the three ANBU had been stripped of their rank and were promptly imprisoned for a period of six months for "conduct unbecoming of an ANBU". It was a generic statement that covered a lot of things, but Rumiko didn't care as she bent down and gave Itachi a quick hug to thank him. She also promised to think twice before attacking, after listening to Itachi tell her how she should have handled the situation.

"Itachi, you are a great asset." Fugaku smiled at his son as he thanked him. His reach did not cover ANBU and he doubted he could have gotten Rumiko anything other than a reduced sentence. Also, several members of the clan had called for retaliation and wanted the three ANBU killed for what they did, including the woman's boyfriend. Fugaku realized that this would have made things worse and forbade them from taking any action. They had followed orders, but were justifiably upset. Now, perhaps they would relax knowing that they had Itachi on their side to help smooth things over.

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The meetings in the secret chamber underneath the Nakano temple in the Uchiha compound were not something Itachi enjoyed. The clansmen who participated were focused, loyal Uchihas who would follow Fugaku into hell. In fact, as far as Itachi was now concerned, that was exactly what they were doing.

Despite his conversation with Danzou, Itachi could not shake his nightmares. They continued to come several times a week and he could not get a good night's sleep. Of course, he had to admit, he never had been able to sleep well and he knew it affected his thinking and mood at times. He had also stopped taking his medication. If something happened during the night and he was sedated then he would be unable to defend his family. Well, Sasuke, anyway.

"We need someone to volunteer to take these two scrolls to the hideout tomorrow." Fugaku's voice invaded Itachi's thoughts.

"I'll do it." Shisui raised one hand and spoke cheerfully.

Fugaku smirked and handed him the scrolls. "Of course."

After the meeting, Itachi and Shisui stayed behind to pick up then took a walk. Both of them quickly left their ANBU tails behind as they made their way into the forest outside of Konoha. Shisui was cheerful at the beginning of the walk, but his mood was dark when he finally sat down in the forest. Itachi had followed him quietly, still lost in his own thoughts.

"Itachi…" Shisui finally spoke. His voice was hesitant, as if he didn't want to say anything.

"Go ahead." Itachi prompted him in a patient voice, and gave him a small smile.

Shisui took a deep breath and continued, "Do you really think that what Fugaku is doing is right? I mean, he makes it sound like only the upper echelon will die, but it can't happen that way. It's impossible. Itachi, thousands of people could end up dying. Just like in Water country. And what about afterward? Other countries will invade while Konoha is weak. Who will defend it? Will there be enough ninja left over to fight? Itachi! I can't handle it… I don't want to do this…"

Itachi looked at his friend. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Shisui had figured it all out on his own. How many other Uchiha also figured this out? "But you keep volunteering for missions. You're always the first to stand up."

Shisui's voice rose in desperation, "Because I can't stand being here anymore! I have to get away! Itachi, sometimes I am so angry I want to kill everyone. I want to rip their throats out. They are hypocrites! I thought when I left Madara I wouldn't have to deal with this anymore, but they are all like him. They claim to live for power, to free the clan from the oppression of the village. Yet, our most powerful jutsus are locked away and Fugaku wants to take over the robes of Hokage. We should unlock our jutsus and leave this village! Return to the hideout. Konoha would be safe and we could live the way we want. We could grow again instead of stagnating."

When he stopped talking he pulled his legs up to his chest and rested his head on his knees. It was silent for several minutes as Itachi thought over everything that Shisui had said. It would work, maybe. Leaving the village would be a huge risk. No doubt Konoha would send ninja after them to try to get them to come back, or perhaps kill them. But instead of thousands, perhaps only hundreds would die.

"I'm not sure that would work as well as you think, Shisui. Uchiha can gather allies quickly, inside the village and outside. There are some independent clans that owe us a small amount of fealty. I also think father is working in secret with some of the Hyuuga side-branch members. At least, he has told us to be kind to them and he gives them special treatment at the police station. And Shisui, Konoha is not kind to traitors. A war could still happen." Itachi's words made Shisui look up. He blinked in shock. Shisui's face was streaked with tears.

"I'm sorry." Itachi said softly. "I am having nightmares about it almost every day."

"We have to stop him." Shisui's voice was shaking. "We have to stop this. It can't happen. Sasuke, Sheeta, and Aya. They are innocent and should not suffer through any of this, but soon, I know, Fugaku will pull them in. Perhaps they know already and just don't talk about it or attend the meetings. I wanted to grow up, Itachi, I wanted to marry Aya and have lots of kids so mother would have grandchildren, but now I know… I have a plan. I've considered it for months and it's the only way. Promise me, though, you will take care of Aya and make sure she gets a good husband."

Itachi felt his chest tighten in fear. What was his cousin talking about? "Shisui… Whatever you have planned, it can't be good if it means leaving Aya and your parents behind. You're the best ninja the clan has!"

"It means nothing if Fugaku gets everyone killed! It means nothing. We have no future… I have no future…" Shisui was silent for a minute as he took several deep breaths to calm himself. "In two months you and I will meet at the Nakano river. I will die by your hand and then you will take my power. Then, you will kill Fugaku."

The silence was overwhelming. Itachi couldn't believe what he had just heard. Shisui had just offered his life to give him the Mangekyou Sharingan. To kill his own father, no less. "It won't work, Shisui." Itachi said desperately, "It is never that simple! The clan will know that only I could have done such a thing. My chances of succeeding him at that point would be nearly zero. Even though I am the heir, the elders must still approve my ascension. If I have no position of power I cannot stop them from attacking."

"Yes you can, Itachi. Even if you have to kill a three or four dozen you can stop it and take control of the clan. I trust you Itachi! You are a brother to me. Please do this." The tears were running freely out of Shisui's eyes and Itachi was fighting back his own tears, not wanting to cry.

"Shisui, it won't work!" Itachi finally yelled, frustrated.

"Why!" Shisui yelled back, sobbing openly now. "Why won't it work!"

"Because I can't kill my own father!" The words were out of his mouth before he could think.

Shisui brought himself back under control. "You are saying you love the man who beat you and your mother senseless, who insisted you keep training under that madman Madara, who repressed your emotions thus preventing you from enjoying being a child? Look at yourself Itachi! You're eleven years old and you're a bloody assassin! Other eleven year olds are still in the Academy. We wasted our lives running after power, training instead of playing. Look at Sasuke! He is already trading his playtime for training and he's only five years old. It shouldn't be that way!"

"I can't argue with that." Itachi whispered. "But I never knew any other way existed."

"I did. I learned it, eventually, by watching other kids when we traveled on missions. I miss the soccer games, and the anime, and reading. All the things we did long ago."

"But we chose to leave all that behind."

"No Itachi, we were incapable of making that choice, we were too young. The clan made it for us. And now, they have made another choice to have us die in an impotent attack on Konoha." Shisui wiped his face on his sleeve.

"Shisui, we will talk again when you get back. Please, think it over. It's a bad plan. I don't want you to die." Itachi was feeling desperate. He couldn't believe what his friend was telling him. He had hidden so many years behind a façade of loyalty and good humor.

"I'm going to leave for the hideout now. Depending on what they need me for when I get there, I should be back soon. I am set in my course Itachi. Two months. I will let you know the date." Shisui spoke as he stood up, then performed a flicker jutsu and disappeared into the night.

Itachi wiped his face, not realizing that he had been crying as well. He couldn't go through with it. He could never kill his father. He didn't love him, but he didn't hate him either. His mother would never forgive him and he didn't want to see her upset. And Sasuke, what would Sasuke do? The thought of his brother looking at him with disappointment and hatred was more than he could stand.

How could he stop Shisui, though? If he told anyone what his cousin had said to him, Shisui would be treated like a traitor. Fugaku would have him executed. Itachi suddenly looked up in shock. Was he just set up by his cousin? He did think his plan through, completely and thoroughly. Itachi was now implicated as much as Shisui. Both of them now ran the risk of being labeled traitors. As such, Itachi could not seek help. He would have to wait for Shisui to make the next move. In that way, Shisui was making sure that his plan would work. Itachi would get the Mangekyou Sharingan. But, he would not kill anyone with it. That bit of the plan would not work.

"I have no choice, I must stay away from Shisui." But as he walked back to the village he wondered how long that would be possible.

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"Itachi." Sasuke was standing outside of Itachi's open bedroom door.

"Yes, Sasuke?"

"Can you practice the Shuriken jutsu with me? I finished my homework and cleaned my room and brushed my hair and put my clothes away." He was smiling, hopefully.

Itachi waved the boy over and he walked over. When he got close Itachi reached out with a finger and tapped the boy on the forehead.

"Sasuke, I'm preparing to leave on a mission right now. I have to leave in a few minutes."

Sasuke rubbed his forehead and frowned. "When will you be back? You're never home and neither is Shisui, and Sheeta and Aya are always busy too. There's no one to play with. I mean… train with."

Itachi looked down at his brother as he registered the Freudian slip. He remembered his conversation with Shisui a few days earlier. "Sasuke, surely you have made some friends at school?" He knew the school had changed the way it enrolled students, and unlike when Itachi had joined, Sasuke's class was all five or six years old. More like a traditional civilian class.

"None of them are as good at Shuriken as I am and you're lots better than me."

"Then don't train with them. Go play soccer or something. You should try to be a kid once in a while."

"I don't want to be a kid! I want to be super strong ninja like you and father!" Sasuke said petulantly as he stormed out of Itachi's bedroom.

Fugaku walked in a second later, having heard the entire conversation. "What was that about?" He wasn't mad, just curious about what was going on.

Itachi looked up at him then looked back down at his backpack and sighed. "Nothing."

"Where are you going?"

"Akatsuki. Leader is upset because I haven't taken any missions in several months."

"Humph. Well, I'm sure your mentor has that smoothed over." Fugaku frowned, a little upset over his son's snide remark.

"Well, if he doesn't I'll ask him to send you my head. You can cash it in at a bounty station and take a long vacation."

Fugaku had to seriously resist the urge to beat the shit out of his eldest son at that point. "If your head is worth that much then you are obviously powerful enough to defend yourself. I don't think I'll be loosing any sleep over your safety. Your mother and Sasuke, on the other hand, will if they hear you talking like that so I suggest you moderate your attitude, at least in front of them."

Itachi sighed. "Yes. Of course. I didn't mean anything by it."

"Itachi, you have had a lot of ANBU missions. I realize only five of you graduated, but why can't they be distributed amongst the other ANBU squads?"

"These missions are singled out for Root only. They are covert even for ANBU and the others can't know about them. There is no one else to handle it until a new class graduates." Itachi finished checking his backpack. "The new class that started last month ended up dropping out. No one will graduate this term. Another class begins in August. That means the earliest we will have help is November."

Fugaku shook his head in disbelief, then spoke quietly. "I am worried that you have been working yourself too hard. You are not getting much sleep, and you are becoming distant. You even pay less attention to Sasuke."

"I am fine, father. It is nothing. And perhaps…you should pay more attention to Sasuke. _He looks up to you_." The last sentence was spoken with so much sarcasm that, once again, Fugaku had to refrain from hitting his son.

Itachi walked calmly out of his room and left the house. Fugaku spoke out loud to the empty room, "Well Toshiro, it looks like you aren't the only one with a teenager. I seem to have gotten one as well."

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**References to Manga chpt 222**

**Please review! **


	46. Chapter 46 Broken Dreams

**Last week, Itachi had a very disturbing conversation with Shisui. He also saved Rumiko from prison by using his ANBU connections with Danzou.**

**Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! More are always welcome xD**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto, not me. I mean, if I did own Naruto Itachi and Deidara would be alive, Sakura would fall in love with Itachi (or Deidara) and Sasuke, Madara and Orochimaru would form an evil trio of villains who do… um… evil. I like bad guys. xD**

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**Chapter 46 – Broken Dreams**

"Sleep." Shisui mumbled as he opened the door to his house with his eyes closed. He had just returned from a mission with two other clansmen and had been awake for almost three days. The trio had been tasked with retrieving some important documents from the southern end of Wind country and the last half of the journey had been spent running with few breaks and no sleep..

"Shisui! You're back. Asano wants to see you at the police station right away." Kisa help her son take off his backpack as she greeted him. Placing it on the floor she quickly pushed the boy back out the door. "The faster you see him the faster you can come back. Dinner is in one hour and I want you here for once." She gave an amused smile as Shisui continued to mumble as he walked down the stairs and into the street.

The June weather was much hotter than usual and the streets of Konoha were almost bare. It always took a few days for people to get used to the warmth, then the streets would be back to normal. Until then, the lonely shopkeepers silently brushed dust off their steps and "closed" signs covered the doors of some stores that decided to give up for a couple days.

Wiping sweat off his face Shisui sighed in contentment as he entered the police station and was met with a blast of cold air.

"Shisui. Over here." An older Uchiha had seen the boy enter the lobby and called him into a conference room.

Entering the small room Shisui saw the head of the First Division sitting at the end of the conference table. Asano was a man in his late forties who, like Fugaku, was stern and fiercely loyal. His face was always held in a frown and his eyes held whatever they glanced at in a vice-like grip that made it difficult for people to turn away.

"Shisui, we have a mission for you that is top secret." Asano's no-nonsense voice instantly grabbed Shisui's attention. "It has come to our attention that Itachi has been acting strangely of late. He is distant and has made some comments that are very unlike him. Possibly Danzou has him in his grip, or something else is affecting him."

"What does this have to do with a mission?" Shisui asked quietly. He was suddenly worried about his younger cousin. Ever since their talk a few weeks ago the boy had been avoiding him. If this is what they meant by "acting strangely" then both of them could be in a lot of trouble.

"It has everything to do with your mission. I am ordering you follow him and report back with any suspicious activity. The captain is making excuses; however, we aren't so sure he isn't without bias since the boy is his son. Our plans are too important and if Itachi has turned traitor we need to find out right away."

"You want me to _spy_ on the clan leader's _son_, the _heir_, because you _think_ you might be suspicious? What does the captain think of this?" Shisui couldn't believe what he was being told to do. He knew his tone was rude, but what did they expect?

"The captain said his son is innocent and we can investigate all we want, we won't find anything."

"Fine. I'll do it." He got up and left the room without waiting to be dismissed. To tell the truth he was planning on keeping close tabs on his cousin anyway. He needed him if his plan was going to have any chance of success. However, he was not, under any circumstances going to rat him out.

"Shisui, you're back. Been talking to Asano?" Fugaku stood in front of him, face wet with sweat it was obvious he had just returned from patrol.

"Yeah. Don't worry, though. I know Itachi probably better than anyone and they're just wagging their tongues." Shisui looked up at Itachi's father, a tired expression on his face.

"Humph. I'm not worried. If anything, I wish he would back off on the missions for a while. I know I have always pushed him hard, but… he might be burning out." Fugaku looked closely at the teenager standing in front of him. "And you could do with some serious sleep as well."

"Yeah, I'm heading there now." Shisui bowed to Fugaku and left the station.

Fugaku wiped his sweaty face on his sleeve as he watched Shisui leave. He had actually noticed that both boys had changed in the last few months. Itachi had become a withdrawn smart-aleck and Shisui had put on a false face and was taking any and all missions that removed him from Konoha. The others had noticed Itachi's behavior change, but not Shisui's. In fact, they saw Shisui as the good son who would do anything to help the clan. Fugaku saw something else and made a mental note to cut back on Shisui's work load until he figured out what was going on.

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Itachi watched the two boys in front of him. They were chasing each other through the woods as they made their way across Fire country toward Konoha. One had white hair, blue eyes and light colored skin, while the other had black hair, black eyes and pastey-white skin. They were almost complete opposites in appearance, yet both had the same annoying habit of getting into trouble.

"Hey! Idiots! Don't get too far ahead or I'll hit you upside the head again!" Yuri yelled at the two boys, then sighed. "As if they're going to listen. I swear, considering how many times I've hit them they must be hollow inside."

"My brother and I are hungry. When are we going to eat?" The white-haired boy gave them a big smile.

"You ate only an hour ago. You'll have to wait." Yuri's exasperation was egging the boy on.

"Yeah, that from a well fed Konoha nin. What about us starving orphans who are underweight and need nutrients to sustain our emaciated physiologies?"

"If you're really a street orphan how come you know such big words?" Itachi asked without emotion. The boy gave him a dirty look and resumed his chasing game.

"This was one crappy assignment." Yuri groused. "'Find orphans with special abilities and return them for Root training.' This had better be worth it. How did you know about those two anyway? It's been bugging me all week."

"Saw them on a previous mission a while back. It was a clan mission." Itachi lied easily. In fact, he and Kisame had run into them while in Water country about three or four weeks ago. They had watched as the two children ganged up on a man who had tried to steel their meager earnings. The thief had been severely injured and the boys had gotten their money back. As street orphans in a country torn up by frequent civil wars neither one of them was likely to live very long without help, even if they were powerful.

"Don't worry," Itachi said, glancing at his partner, "I'm sure we won't have anything more to do with them after we drop them off. We're too busy anyway." He pulled out his Katana and cut through an ink lion that the black-haired boy had sent at him, then put his sword back. He didn't acknowledge the attack and the boy frowned in frustration.

The abilities of the two boys were unique. They were not truly brothers, but had found each other on the streets of the capital and ganged up together to protect themselves from the older children and adults who took advantage of them. Combining their jutsus they were able to scratch out a living, but never made enough to do anything more than buy a couple small meals.

The white-haired boy had a sword, a simple cheaply made katana that he practiced with constantly. He had become quite good with it and said he wanted to grow up to be a swordsman. The other boy could draw ink animals then use a jutsu to animate them and attack his opponent. He had been learning to fight from his brother and Itachi noticed he had considerable talent and intelligence. The two boys were a couple years apart in age, the white-haired boy being the oldest at nine.

"So what's going to happen when we get to Konoha?" The black-haired boy asked a couple hours later when they finally stopped to eat some rice-balls.

Yuri answered, "Well, we'll stick you in the vet's office to get de-wormed and rabies shots then…"

"We're not dogs!" The boy yelled angrily as Yuri laughed at him.

Itachi held back a sigh, Yuri was letting her emotions get in the way. "You will be taken to a training facility where you will be clothed and fed. You will then be enrolled in the Konoha ninja academy. You will learn to be ninja of the highest level. I have explained this to you before."

"I know. But why won't you use our names?"

"You have no names. If you want such I can drop you off at an orphanage and you can be adopted out to a nice civilian family. You won't learn any ninjutsu, though." Itachi was getting bored with the conversation. These kids really were annoying. The two boys looked at each other and ate the rest of their meal quietly.

Arriving in Konoha later than night Danzou met them inside the barracks. He looked down at the children, smiling. "There are already four other children here, I expect you to get along with them or I will be disappointed. This is a second chance, your only chance actually, to become ninja. Villages do not usually allow orphans in because they are expensive to raise. Do I make myself understood?"

The two boys nodded, a little afraid to say anything. The village, the ANBU headquarters, all the masked ninjas and this elderly man standing in front of them was a little overwhelming.

"Good. Now, find an empty bed and get some sleep. Training begins tomorrow. The other children will tell you what to do for the first few days until you get the gist of things so accept their help." The boys nodded again then walked into the darkened room. Finding empty beds next to each other they quickly removed their sandals and climbed in, not bothering to remove their clothes.

Danzou closed the door and motioned for Itachi and Yuri to follow him. The hall was brightly lit and unlike the other levels of ANBU, empty.

"You have done well. Three more children and the quota will be full. The other team is off collecting them. I'll let you know how many they bring back." Danzou turned around and walked away.

Itachi wondered if the elder's plan would really work. He was "adopting" five- to ten-year-old boys so he could train them to be Root ANBU. These children would be subjected to constant training and a lifestyle devoid of play and self. He claimed they would make the ultimate sacrifice to keep Konoha safe. He also said that his version of ANBU was what the organization should be and he intended on one day replacing ANBU completely with Root.

It was a bold plan, but he doubted most of the current ANBU would have been able to pass the training program. Which meant there would be fewer operatives. However, perhaps if they were more effective it wouldn't matter. The same work could get done more efficiently with fewer people.

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"Ah! Itachi, you're back." Fugaku had heard Itachi come into the house and walked out into the hallway as the boy greeted his mother. It was almost midnight.

"Greetings, father." Itachi said formally. He didn't bow, however.

"I had an interesting discussion with Danzou this afternoon." Fugaku frowned in displeasure, putting Itachi instantly on edge.

"What was the subject of this discussion?"

"Apparently he is starting a new program and requested that my second son, who is a member of the side branch and therefore _unimportant_, be given to him as a recruit." Fugaku's distaste was evident in his words.

"I trust you declined the offer?" Itachi said smoothly.

"Itachi, I don't even like having you that close to him. Sasuke, who is a naïve child, would become lost to his family. You are smart enough to see through his trappings and remain loyal to your clan. Itachi, keep Danzou away from Sasuke."

"That goes without saying." Itachi kept the emotion out of his voice, but inside he was seething. The thought of his younger brother being raised to become a mindless warrior was unacceptable.

"He also hit Hiashi up for some Hyuuga children. Hiashi threatened to have him killed if he ever made such a suggestion again."

"So that is why he sent us out the village to gather street orphans. He couldn't get them legally." Itachi smirked. "He is very devoted to protecting Konoha and seems to want to go to any lengths to do so."

"Just so long as he leaves Sasuke out of it."

"Understood." Itachi left his father in the hall and made his way to his room.

"Shisui has been looking for you, Itachi." Mikoto called out to him. Itachi stopped walking and nodded once to indicate he heard her, before continuing down the hall.

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Itachi was trying, unsuccessfully, to avoid his cousin. Shisui was proving to be an excellent tracker, popping in and out at unexpected times. The older boy refused to back out of his plan, causing Itachi to worry about his cousin's sanity. Was he truly trying to save the village by sacrificing himself, or was he suicidal?

At the next secret clan meeting Itachi decided to ask a few questions, something he rarely did.

"My Lord," Itachi addressed his father and the other people in the room looked curiously at the boy. "Why don't we just leave the village? Is there really a good reason to stay here if we aren't wanted? The hideout…"

Fugaku interrupted him, furious. "Itachi! We have been through this before. Konoha is our home and we are struggling now to set it right. The way it should be. To leave would be to return to the wilderness and warrior existence we once led. Our ancestors left that behind for a reason."

"But fewer people would die if we left." Itachi spoke with no emotion.

"I do not foresee many Uchiha deaths. The elderly, young, and weak will be hidden during the attack so they will survive. The ninjas are so highly skilled that there should be fewer than twenty casualties." Fugaku stared at Itachi, wondering what his son was getting at.

"What about the villagers?" Itachi asked calmly.

"What about them?" Fugaku's response took Itachi by surprise.

"They could die!" Itachi raised his voice, "Are you considering ruling over a village of corpses?"

Fugaku stood up and looked down angrily at his son, then raised his voice, "Itachi, you are out of line. We are doing this for Uchiha, and Uchiha alone. Are your priorities that corrupted? Have you learned nothing of what I have taught you… of what you have seen from the way they treat us? Besides, if we left they would follow us and attack. If you are worried about death then you should see that more Uchiha would die in that scenario. Also, your precious 'villagers' will die as well when we attack Konoha to defend ourselves. The scenario is planned out according to our rules and traditions. We will stick to the original plan."

Itachi bowed his head, steeling a glance at his cousin who had a neutral expression plastered on his face.

"Any more questions, _Lord Itachi_?" His father's sarcasm was not lost on the boy, and he shook his head in defeat. It was crystal clear. Fugaku had his sights set on Konoha, on the Hokage, and nothing else mattered. Shisui was right. He didn't even want to consider another solution. Itachi couldn't believe he had once thought it the only option, that his father was correct in his actions. He knew there had to be another solution, but how could he get his father to consider one?

Some of the men in the meeting had been exchanging glances and Itachi looked out of the corner of his eye and saw them staring at him. He wondered what they were thinking, but decided to ignore it.

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"Itachi!" Sasuke came running into his older brother's room, waking him up in the process. "Father wants you down at the temple, now! There's all these ANBU down there and everything!"

"What's going on?" Itachi quickly got out of bed and pulled on a pair of black pants and a black shirt that had the Uchiha logo on the back.

"I don't know. I was on my way to school and father saw me and called me over and told me to come get you." Sasuke's eyes were wide with worry.

"Everything will be okay, Sasuke. Now go to school and don't worry about anything." Itachi strapped his sword to his back and picked up his shurikan holder as he walked out of the door.

As Itachi approached the temple he could see there were about nine ANBU standing in front of the temple, barring entrance to the several Uchiha's who stood around looking like they'd love to kill someone. The boy sighed and closed his eyes for a couple seconds. He had only been able to get about an hour of sleep and his head was feeling fuzzy. He reached into his shurikan holster and pulled out a soldier pill then put it in his mouth. Within seconds he was wide awake.

"What's going on, father?" His calm voice sounded a little lazy. He looked over the gathered Uchiha's and saw that Shisui was among the gathered men. The older boy was wearing a mask of indignation, but Itachi knew it to be false.

"ANBU is searching the temple. They seem to think there is a secret chamber in there." Fugaku didn't seem to be half as angry as Itachi expected him to be. In fact, he almost appeared amused. As if the whole thing was a private joke.

Itachi frowned. "That's ridiculous. If we have the hideout, why would we need a secret chamber here?" He looked at the masked ANBU who stood in front of the stone wall, barring the entrance. They were giving off a strong killing intent to match that of the Uchiha were staring them down.

"Don't do anything rash. I will return as soon as possible." He performed a jutsu and disappeared. Fugaku smirked. Letting his son handle this would definitely smooth things over. He preferred to take care of clan matters on his own, but now that his son was older he had to accept that the boy could help at times. Also, taking advantage of his ANBU connections was a definite plus for the clan.

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"What is it Itachi? Make it quick, please, I don't like leaving those nine boys alone for very long. They tied up their Taijutsu instructor yesterday." Danzou walked slowly into the hallway outside one of the Root training rooms.

Itachi gave the elder a digruntled look, completely believing that the boys were more trouble than they were worth and should be returned to wherever they were retrieved from. However, he had more important matters to deal with.

"The temple in the Uchiha compound is being searched by ANBU. They believe there is a secret chamber in it."

"Is that right?" Danzou pursed his lips and closed his eyes. "I was not informed of this action. I will consult with the Hokage immediately. Itachi, _does_ the temple have a secret room?"

Itachi looked Danzou in the eye. "Yes."

"What is in this room, Itachi?" Danzou's voice was quiet and tinged with kindness.

"Nothing. It is empty." Itachi watched as the man before him gave him a look of disbelief. "Really, it has nothing in it." He was telling the truth. The meeting room had nothing stored in it. Everything had been moved to the hideout years ago and the room was now used only for meetings.

"Interesting. I wonder what the Hokage is looking for then? As usual, the man's hunches are wrong. Wait for me outside the Hokage tower, Itachi." The man walked away, back down the hall.

A few minutes later Danzou walked through the door of the Hokage's building and into the street. He was followed by two of the Hokage's ANBU. "Itachi, return home. The ANBU have been ordered to back off."

"Yes, master Danzou." Itachi performed a jutsu and disappeared, reappearing next to his father.

Looking at the temple he watched as the ANBU walked out of the building and disappeared. The entryway was now clear.

"How did you do that, Itachi?" One of the elders asked the boy.

"I consulted with Danzou and assured him that no such chamber existed. He believed me and asked the Hokage to pull out." Itachi lied easily.

"We are grateful for your help, Lord Itachi." The head monk, an old man in his seventies, bowed to the boy. "You truly are everything we hoped you would be. Thank-you for your help." The old man turned around and waved to the three other monks. "Let's get inside and tidy up, I'm sure they made a mess of some sort."

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"Madara, you came. I didn't think you would."

"How could I refuse? My favorite ex-student calls me and here I am." Madara stepped out of the forest and into the small clearing. "Now, Shisui, what is on your mind?"

The chosen meeting site was two hours outside of Konoha. Faintly lit by the bright midnight stars, the lack of a moon prevented the tree covered ground from receiving much light. However, that did not affect Shisui or Madara as they stood staring at each other with their Sharingans.

"You said, a long time ago, that there was a way to obtain Mangekyou Sharingan that doesn't involve killing your best friend. I want to know what that is, Madara." Shisui's voice was steady and resolute.

"Hmm. Your voice has changed. You sound more like a man and less like little boy. Yet your words, while spoken in an adult voice, are childish." Madara stared at the teenager in front of him. Shisui had grown up a lot, but he still clung to a false ideal that there was a way to protect Itachi from harm.

"What do you mean?" Shisui was tired of hearing people tell him his voice had changed, he already noticed it so why did everyone feel they needed to point it out to him?

"You cannot protect Itachi. I realize he is like your little brother and therefore you love him dearly, but it can't be done. Itachi has a destiny and it will lead to pain and suffering. That is true of all Uchiha, Shisui. Itachi knows this and accepts it, why do you fight it?" Madara sat down on the ground and leaned back against a tree.

"I can protect Itachi. I am going to give him the Mangekyou Sharingan, but he refuses to fight me. Tell me the other way, Madara! I have to know!" Shisui wasn't in the mood to play games. He also refused to believe the man's twisted view of reality.

Madara was taken aback by Shisui's words. He couldn't believe what the boy's devotion had driven him to do.

"_Lord Madara, he killed himself. How could you consider it anything else? My beloved Izuna is gone and it's all your fault!" The woman, his brother's widow, stood in front of him sobbing and yelling. Sixteen years old she had only been married to Izuna for a few weeks when he had given his eyes to Madara, rendering him blind._

"_It was his choice to join us in the battlefield." Madara kept his voice calm, even though his heart felt like it was ripping itself to shreds. Izuna had married a woman he was deeply in love with but had thrown it all away in order to restore Madara's sight. "He saw the clan dividing itself when I was unable to lead it and convinced me to take his eyes. He did it so the clan could continue to prosper. So you would have a future, even if it is with another man. Your hysterical performance is disrespectful. Many men have come forward to offer you marriage as a show of gratitude and respect for Izuna, yet you have selfishly refused them all."_

_The woman had collapsed onto the ground and one Madara's wives came forward and helped her get back up and then took her out of the room. She had killed herself in her grief a few hours later. He had thought little of it at the time. There were more important things to occupy his life. However, the intervening years had created much time for reflection and he discovered that he did not regret his brother's sacrifice._

"Shisui, how exactly is giving him the Mangekyou going to protect him? What are you really up to?" Madara adjusted his orange and black mask, then took it off, laying it on the ground next to him.

Shisui stared, he had never seen the man without his mask before. He looked to be in his thirties, perhaps. His face was free of scars and he had bags under his eyes. Other than that, Shisui was surprised at how much he looked like Sasuke. However, he was an Uchiha and they were all related to some degree so he decided it shouldn't be that much of a surprise. Assuming his appearance wasn't a Genjutsu, that is. Something he could see Madara doing just for the hell of it.

"I want… If I tell you, you'll probably stop me. Why can't you just tell me what I need to know?" Shisui didn't trust his old mentor.

"Just answer the question, Shisui. I grow tired of your games." Madara rubbed his eyes.

"I want Itachi to gain the Mangekyou Sharingan and then kill Fugaku to prevent the coup."

Madara groaned. "It won't work, Shisui. Itachi won't do it."

"He will! I know he will! When it comes down to it, he has to protect the village! When he sees Fugaku killing hundreds, maybe thousands of Konoha civilians and ninja I know he'll stop him! For Itachi, it will be instinct." Shisui was desperate. He was convinced his plan would work, he needed Madara to believe it too, so he could find out how to help Itachi.

"I see your point. Perhaps it will work if it comes to that." Madara thought over the options. Shisui and Itachi were against the coup. That probably meant a few other Uchiha were too. That could prevent its successful completion. He was thinking of letting it succeed so he could have some control of Konoha. However, it really didn't matter. Whether Fugaku did it in a few short years or he did it in a few long years, Madara knew Konoha would eventually be his.

And, more importantly, Itachi would have the Mangekyou Sharingan. It was something Madara had planned for the boy to attain his entire life. Itachi was eleven and very powerful. He was comparable to Madara at that age, and that made him invaluable to his future plans.

"Shisui, are you prepared to die? To leave behind your parents and your fiancé? Death is final. It's not like falling asleep for a long time. There is no dreaming, no waking up." Madara's voice became kind and he dropped his usual deep tone.

"Yes."

Madara raised one eyebrow, questioning the teenager's response.

"I thought it over for months. I know what I will leave behind. But the benefit will be worth it. I have to do this."

"The Sharingan was released through intense emotion, usually fear. The Mangekyou Sharingan is unlocked through another intense emotion – grief. The grief of loosing the person closest to you. The person you yourself would die for. People have many friends in their lives, but only a few, if any, are ever this close. You, Shisui, tend to form close ties with those around you, causing people to become attached to you quickly. If you kill yourself, the emotion Itachi feels will, without a doubt, bring out the Mangekyou Sharingan."

Shisui listened carefully to Madara's words, however it sounded fishy. "Then how come more people don't have it?"

"Only a small percentage of people with Sharingan are capable of attaining the advanced jutsu. You, Itachi and Fugaku are a few of them. I suspect Sasuke is as well. There are a few others in the village. Fumitake is capable, but he will be dead soon from his disease. Your parents are not." Madara revealed the information patiently.

"So you can tell… Okay. Thank-you. I…" Shisui suddenly realized that he would never see Madara again and a lump formed in his throat. "Thank-you for everything. And if you can, look after my brother." He paused, then remembered Sasuke and added, "Both of them."

"I will do my best, Shisui." It was probably an empty promise, Madara realized that as soon as he said it, but Shisui needed to hear it.

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Shisui nodded once then turned around to walk into the dark forest. He wondered if Itachi would hate him for what he was about to do. Tricking him into obtaining the Mangekyou Sharingan was the only way to go about it. Itachi would never agree to a fight. Even if Shisui were to attack his cousin the boy would just run away. He looked up at the sky and wished there was another way to save the clan, to save the village.

"I'm sorry, mother, father, Aya. Everyone." Shisui never paused as he walked back to the village. There could be no looking back, but at the same time there was no looking forward either. Only a few days, a few hours and the fate of Konoha would rest solely on shoulders of Itachi.

Entering the gates in the early morning darkness Shisui couldn't help but realize that his actions were hypocritical. He had told Itachi that their lives had been planned out by the clan, that they had no free choice. And here he was, about to give Itachi an eye-jutsu that the boy didn't want. It was wrong, but Shisui felt that he also had no choice. The actions of the clan had driven him to this. They had to be stopped and Itachi was the only one powerful enough to stand against Fugaku.

Reaching the lake Shisui pulled out a small piece of paper and a pen. He had a message to write, one that he hoped would remind Itachi why he was doing this, yet not tip off anyone else in the clan. It was going to be the hardest, most important thing he ever did, and there would be no second chances.

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After Shisui had left Madara smiled. "Itachi, when you are at full strength, you will be of great use to me. I have waited for this for eight years. Longer, actually, since a child with your genius seems to only come along every few generations."

"So the boy is ready." A hologram of Pein walked out of the woods to stand a few feet in front of Madara. The white figure flickered slightly as a pale rainbow of colors flickered on the edges. "How long will the training take?"

Madara stood up and brushed the dirt and leaves off of his pants. "A few months. It will take some time for him to get used to the eyes, he will find them quite painful in the beginning. After that, it should be quick. However, the lessons will be sporadic due to their advanced nature and our busy schedules. We must take care that no one finds out about Itachi's power."

"Surely Fugaku will figure it out." Pein's deep voice voiced his skepticism.

"Yeah, the bastard probably already has it figured out." Madara sighed in frustration. He was beginning to realize how badly he had underestimated the clan leader. The man who had appeared weak and over-emotional, was actually a strong and brilliant tactician who stood a very good chance of killing Sarutobi.

"You can have him killed. Either one of us could do it easily." Pein said unemotionally. "However, having Konoha in a weakened position has benefits."

"Pein, I don't need the Konoha Uchiha. Except for Itachi and perhaps Sasuke, the rest are inconsequential. Including Fugaku. Let them play their little games for now. Itachi will grow into his powers and my plans will come to fruition. My power is all that matters." Madara bent down to pick up his mask then put it back over his face. "I'm going to return to Mist for a while."

"What about the other boy? The one from Stone?" Pein's voice was impatient. His face could not be seen because of the nature of the hologram, but his eyes, composed of several concentric circles, blazed furiously.

"I want him paired with Sasori. I believe he may be able to hold the boy in check. We'll have to wait for Orochimaru to leave first. When he makes his move on Itachi I imagine the kid'll kill him. That'll free up a ring." Madara looked down the path that Shisui had taken a few minutes earlier, wondering what was going through though the teenager's mind. He had wondered the same thing when his brother had sacrificed himself as well, but the answer never came.

Pein noticed Madara's wandering gaze and frowned. "There is still time to stop him, however, Itachi is central to our goals."

"I have no desire to stop him. If anything, I wish he and Itachi could have fought. It would have been better. The power one gets from the knowledge that you can kill someone close to you is phenomenal. And I would have enjoyed watching. I have always wondered who was more powerful, Itachi or Shisui. I have always suspected Shisui would win, but it is Itachi we need. Mentally he is a better fit. Shisui would have broken under the pressure. This plan of his proves it." Madara was all-business as he explained the situation.

"You have watched many of these fights, why does this one interest you so much?"

"I have to go now. I will check in occasionally to verify Akatsuki's progress." Madara's words ended the conversation and he watched as Pein's Hologram disappeared without saying anything else.

Madara looked up at the sky. A few stars could be seen through the leaves and he sighed. "Because Itachi is like me and Shisui is like Izuna. I have always wondered which one would win, me or my brother, if we had fought to the death."

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**Simon says: Please review **


	47. Chapter 47 Shisui of the Still Waters

**Thanks for all the great reviews! This next chapter marks a turning point in the story and is very sad (I think so anyway). **

**I fixed a typo in the previous chapter that was pointed out to me. Thanks for seeing that. I had to laugh at myself when I saw the mistake, it was pretty obvious XD**

** finally added Madara as a character. Yeah! So I changed one of the character selections for searches from Tobi to Madara. **

**The name Shisui means "still water"**

**Correct – that is Sai that Itachi and Yuri brought to Konoha. The older brother isn't Suigetsu though. The new databook does confirm that Sai is 17 and he had an older "brother" (they weren't really related). Suigetsu is younger. They do look alike though, and the way Sai described him reminds me of Suigetsu. xD**

**Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Kishimoto. **

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**Chapter 47 – Shisui of the Still Waters**

"Itachi, your father has been waiting to speak with you." Mikoto had heard Itachi come in and greeted him on front of the porch. "He's in his meeting room." She looked over her son with concern. He was spotless and looked calm and wide awake, but she suspected he had spent the entire day training and had probably eaten his meals out of food stands.

"Yes mother." Itachi replied quietly, then walked down the hall. Mikoto followed him, and when they entered the room she took her place next to Fugaku. Itachi sat in front of them. The room was dark and Itachi noticed that his father had been meditating.

"Itachi, we have a clan meeting tomorrow. Be there." As usual, Fugaku got straight to the point."

"I can't." Itachi was tired of the meetings, and for the last few weeks had arranged to miss every single one of them. Of course, it was also a way to avoid Shisui. He still hadn't decided on the best course of action as far as his cousin's offer to sacrifice himself so Itachi could gain the Mangekyou Sharingan.

"What!" Fugaku yelled, much louder than he should have and Mikoto looked up at him, worried. "You do know what day tomorrow is? Right?"

Itachi thought for a minute. He then remembered that it marked one of his father's deadlines in his plan to take over Konoha. All of the people who had been stationed at the hideout would be in attendance, reporting on their progress.

Fugaku moderated his voice slightly and continued, "You don't understand your position."

"I have a mission that begins tomorrow." Itachi kept his voice calm, refusing to allow his father to anger him.

"What mission?" Fugaku was sure he had not heard Itachi inform him of any upcoming missions.

"It's covert. I can't tell you what it is."

Fugaku's anger started to grow again. How dare his son speak to him this way? The meeting was important clan business, and here Itachi was acting like he could just waltz in and out whenever he wanted.

"Itachi, you are the pipeline between the clan and village. You understand?" Fugaku wanted to yell but he kept control of his emotions and instead glared at the boy sitting in front of him.

"Yeah." Itachi's simple answer did not convince Fugaku of anything.

"Take it to heart and attend the meeting tomorrow."

Itachi was about to give his father another non-committal "yeah" when his keen ears picked up a sound on the other side of the shoji-doors. "Sasuke, when you are finished in the bathroom, go back to sleep."

The shoji door opened about eight inches and a small head peaked in. Looking ashamed at having been caught spying, albeit not on purpose, Sasuke looked at his parents and Itachi sitting in the dark room. The talking and yelling had woken him up and he had walked down the hall to find out what was going on.

Fugaku quickly stood up and walked angrily across the room, stopping just behind where Itachi was sitting. "What are you doing up at this time of night! Go back to bed!" He yelled at the boy and the door closed. A few seconds later the sound of another door closing could be heard, telling them that that the boy was back in his room.

"Itachi, the meeting is not optional. Be there." Fugaku walked out of the room.

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The next morning Itachi rose before the rest of the family, dressed in his ANBU gear and quietly left the house. However, unbeknownst to the boy, Fugaku had awoken shortly after he did and was watching him through the window. He knew Itachi did not have any mission and had hoped the boy would come to his senses and attend the meeting, but he doubted it.

Itachi first checked in with ANBU HQ to see if there were any outstanding missions. Sometimes the lower ranked missions were left open-ended so that if someone wanted an extra job he could volunteer. Some of them were even solitary assignments.

Walking into the fifth sub-level of the building Itachi checked the assignment board. There was nothing. He turned around to leave when he heard someone calling him.

"Rat! Rat!" Two boys, the same two he and Yuri had brought to the village several weeks earlier, ran up to him.

"Can you stay and train with us today?" The white-haired boy asked anxiously. The dark-haired boy was standing back, a blank expression on his face, but his eyes still held anticipation.

"No. And quit asking. You know Danzou doesn't want us training with you." Itachi was annoyed that the boy kept asking. He had never offered to train them and had no idea why they kept asking.

"Who cares what Danzou wants. You're the best one here and I want to learn from the best. Not a washed up old man or that bogus Taijutsu master. My older brother was a hundred times better and you are just like him!" The boy's excitement was evident in his voice. The other boys were beginning to settle down and accept Danzou's guidance, but this boy was fighting it.

Itachi knew why it was happening, too. He realized he should never have brought him to the village. From a very young age the boy had been raised by his elder brother to become a ninja. However, the man had died and the boy had been abandoned. Itachi had asked Kisame why Mist village would abandon such a powerful child. The shark-man had said it was unusual to abandon such a promising student and conjectured that the elder brother had disgraced the village somehow and the younger brother was paying the price.

"Danzou is your last chance. You are an orphan now. If you are thrown out of another village, how will you take care of yourself? You should listen to your elders and follow their instruction. When you are older…" Itachi looked at the boy who was now looking up at him and frowning, listening closely to every word. 'I'm only two years older than him.' Itachi thought to himself.

"How old was your brother?" He knew he wasn't supposed to ask questions about the past, after all, in Root there was no past and there was no future.

"He was twenty-eight. Mother was old when she had me and died so he raised me." The boy answered quickly, looking over his shoulder as he spoke. He knew it was a forbidden subject.

"Focus on the present. Learn your lessons, practice hard. That is all you can do for him now. He is beyond helping you, and the fact that you are alive must have been due to a great sacrifice on his part. Don't let it go to waste." Itachi spoke without emotion, but inside he was thinking of Sasuke and the promise he had made to ensure that his brother did not have to go through the painful training he had.

"Yes. I… I'll do as you say." The boy bowed forward slightly and walked away slowly, his dark-haired "brother" following him.

A moment later Itachi felt a presence and looked up as Danzou came into view. Apparently he had been hiding behind a corner. "Thank-you Itachi. I think you may have actually reached him. He has been difficult to control."

"I did nothing but speak the truth." Itachi bowed forward slightly to acknowledge Danzou's arrival.

"You underestimate yourself. You have great intuition and foresight." Danzou was quiet for a moment, then changed the subject. "You are looking for another mission?"

"Yes."

Danzou looked at the boy, wondering why he was so adamant about being out of the village lately. He had asked, but Itachi had not given him a real answer, so he dropped it. "There actually won't be anything until next week."

"Then I shall train." Itachi bowed again and walked away. Exiting the village he decided that he would start his training by running to the next village.

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"I must apologize on behalf of Itachi for his absence. He is kept busy by his ANBU duties and is unable to attend." Fugaku opened the meeting by apologizing for his son. It was not something he was happy about and he made a mental note to hit the boy upside the head for it. His behavior had become unacceptable and the longer it was allowed to continue, the harder it would be to correct him later.

"And what is the reason for Shisui's absence?" One of the elders asked angrily.

Toshiro looked around, noticing for the first time that his son wasn't there. "The last time I saw him was this morning. He didn't give any indication that he would be late."

The Police First Division head spoke with a stern voice, "He was assigned to follow Itachi, perhaps they are together."

Fugaku felt his stomach flip-flop at Asano's suggestion. Were the two boys fighting? He had assumed, earlier, that Itachi had just left the village and was probably camping in the woods to avoid the meeting. But if Shisui confronted him and insisted he attend the meeting it could get ugly. Itachi had not been in a good mood for a long time and was becoming impatient.

Of course, it was equally possible that both boys were together and had ditched the meeting on purpose. Shisui was not happy, despite the "face" he was showing the clan. Fugaku seemed to be the only one who saw this. He had removed him from missions outside of the village until he could find out what was wrong, but he was no closer to discovering a reason than he had been a month ago. Shisui was definitely one of the best actors Fugaku had ever met. The boy was a genius above and beyond what Itachi was.

"Let's get down to business then. If they come in late or not at all we'll deal with it then." Fugaku's angry voice brought everyone to attention and the meeting began.

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_Itachi walked toward the river in the early morning darkness. The dry path turned wet as he reached a secluded spot. There was a figure sitting on a large boulder next to the path, looking longingly into the water. It turned around and an eyeless face stared at the boy then pointed to the river. Its mouth moved, but no words could be heard. _

_Looking into the water Itachi could see two red eyes looking back up at him. Turning around he saw that the figure on the rock was now wet. Some of the weeds that grew near the bank were in its hair. It pointed again, this time at a small piece of paper that was sitting on top of a different boulder. A small stone held the paper in place._

_As soon as Itachi picked up the stone it turned into an eye and blinked at him. The sharingan gazed up. For some reason Itachi did not understand, he pushed the stone into this right eye. Looking down at the paper again he saw that a second stone had materialized. Picking it up, he pushed it into his left eye. _

_The figure on the stone suddenly wailed, as if in intense sorrow. Itachi fell to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. He tried to reach for the figure's leg but his hand passed through it. Looking back into the water he could see, through his tears, a face slowly rising from the watery depths to the surface. It spoke in a very familiar voice._

"_I have cursed you, my brother. And in turn you will curse your brother. It never ends. In my present state I can see a thousand different paths for you, and all end in sorrow. But, for some reason, that makes you happy. I am unable to understand your fate or read your heart, but know that with the gift of my eyes I will always walk with you and see your path, until the end, when darkness falls and fate joins us together once again."_

"_Shisui…" _

Itachi sat straight up in his bed and covered his mouth, stifling the scream that threatened to escape. The dream had been so vivid, so real. Swinging his legs over the side of the bed he placed his feet on the floor. One foot, however, slipped slightly on the wood floor. Lifting it up he saw that it was wet. He pulled the blankets back and saw that the spot where his feet had been was muddy.

Itachi quickly stood up and ran to the small mirror attached to the wardrobe. Looking at his face he saw dirt around his eyes. "It was just a dream. I… what happened? Was I sleepwalking?"

"_No."_ A voice spoke quietly, as if from a distance. He looked around but couldn't see anything, then assumed his imagination was playing tricks on him.

"I must have just gotten dirtier than I thought when I was training. The dream is freaking me out." He walked back to his bed and got back in it. He remembered that he had been training by a small pool of water formed by a river bend until a couple hours ago and the area had been very muddy. Closing his eyes he reasoned that he had been so preoccupied he hadn't bothered to wash up as he usually would. But still, he was unable to get back to sleep. Red eyes, a ghostly figure, and wet feet kept him awake for the rest of the night.

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On the other end of the Uchiha compound Aya also lay awake. Earlier that day Shisui had given her a gift. He called it an early birthday gift, but she had been suspicious and playfully accused him of cheating on her, then bribing her into forgiving him.

"_Did the bribe work?" Shisui teased back, a big smile on his face._

_Aya smiled and opened the small box. Her smile disappeared as it turned into wide-eyed amazement. A chain composed of inset diamonds that had eleven flower shaped setting, inset with more diamonds looked up from the immaculate black velvet lined box. Two earrings, diamond studs, were placed in the center. Aya and her sisters had seen it in the jewelry store and drooled over the beautiful stones. However, the price was almost 250,000 ryou. She remembered that clearly._

_Aya licked her lips then swallowed a couple times, trying to compose herself. Her feeling were conflicting. She was extremely flattered that Shisui had purchased such a beautiful necklace. However, it was her practical side that won out, "Shisui, you can't afford this… you can't. Please, take it back." She felt tears welling up and she quickly looked down as she put the cover back over the box. A tear leaked out of her left eye and she quickly wiped it away._

_The expression on Shisui's face was veiled as he re-opened the box and removed the necklace. Placing it around her neck he then pulled out the earrings and put then on her ears. "You're so beautiful Aya. So beautiful…" His voice faded away as he gripped her chin with one hand and pulled her against him with the other. Lowering his face he captured her lips with his. A few seconds later Aya began returning his kiss, and wrapped her arms around his neck. As they kissed, Aya couldn't help but think about how it was like the romance novels she "borrowed" from her older sister and mother. _

_Finally breaking out of the kiss he pulled back and placed his forehead on Aya's. "I can afford it, my love. The clan pays well for missions at my level, and I got a large inheritance from my uncle when he died. I want you to have everything, but this is all I can give you." His dark eyes looked into Aya's own dark eyes. She got the feeling he was trying to tell her something, wanted to tell her something. But in the end they parted – he to return to work and she to return to her training._

"I love you." Aya said out loud. "That was what you wanted to say." She fingered the necklace that she had yet to take off. A bad feeling had been growing in the pit of her stomach all day. A feeling of dread. "I love you too, Shisui, but why do I feel this way?"

"_Love." _

The word echoed in the room as the glass in a photo frame shattered with a delicate tinkling. Quickly turning on the lamp on her nightstand Aya looked around the room for the voice but saw she was still alone. Glancing down at her nightstand she saw the shattered glass around the picture frame. Looking closer at the picture she felt her heart break and she buried her head in her pillow, sobbing uncontrollably as a feeling of deep, inconsolable sorrow engulfed her.

The photograph had been taken during a festival and Aya, Sheeta, Itachi and Shisui were laughing and standing arm-in-arm, in a façade of happiness. A moment frozen in time, with no past or future. No cares or worries. Four children, forever happy, staring out from a picture frame at a young girl crying in a half-lit room. Photos can be cruel sometimes.

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"Itachi! Itachi! Look what I got!" Sasuke ran out onto the porch outside of the living room where his brother was sitting.

Itachi took a piece of paper from his brother and opened it. He was still tired from his run the day before, and he hadn't slept the previous night either. Something had kept him from relaxing. For some reason, Shisui, who had been popping in and out wherever Itachi was, had not shown up. Normally that would have been good news, but yesterday it had bothered it. And it still did. Then that nightmare had prevented him from sleeping. It was probably the worst nightmare he had ever had.

"You are doing excellent in your studies, Sasuke. First in everything." Itachi smiled warmly at the boy who was now sitting next to him.

"I don't think father noticed when I showed it to him." Sasuke remembered the day before when he had shown his scores to his father. He had expected to hear him say "that's my son", but instead he had told him to keep up the good work and one day he might be as good as Itachi.

"It's all about you, Itachi. Father only sees you." Sasuke frowned and looked at ground below the porch.

Itachi realized that Fugaku was comparing Sasuke's progress to his own. In his eyes, Sasuke would only be successful if he surpassed him. He thought back to his conversation with the Mist boy. That boy would only consider himself successful if he surpassed his older brother as well. Itachi realized that it wasn't so much that their father was being a jerk as it was the curse of birth order. The first born built a wall and the rest either jumped over it or tripped.

'At least father has never treated him differently because he's really Madara's son. That is one thing Sasuke should be grateful for.' Itachi thought to himself as he continued to look at his brother.

"You hate me, Sasuke?" Itachi teased looking up at the sky, smiling. Sasuke's shocked face made him want to laugh, but instead he turned serious. "Living the life of the Shinobi one learns to be hated and accept it."

"But that's not…" Sasuke suddenly stopped talking. Did he hate his brother?

Itachi gave a short laugh at his brother's confusion. "To be the best…it's hard. Power leads to isolation which soon leads to arrogance." He quoted one of Danzou's lessons. "No matter how high people's expectations for you are. It'll always be the two of us, Sasuke. I exist as the wall you need to climb over. Even if it means you must hate me, that's what older brothers are for."

Bang! A sudden noise jarred the two boys from their discussion and they turned to look back into the house. Neither Fugaku nor Mikoto were home so there shouldn't have been any sound inside the building.

"Itachi! Are you in there!" A man's muffled voice echoed through the living room behind the boys.

"We need to talk to you!" A second, older man's voice yelled.

The sound had come from the back door on the other side of the house. Guests usually came to the front door, which was on the same side of the house the boys were currently sitting on.

Itachi stood up and walked through the living room, slid open a shoji door that was hardly ever used and walked around a corner to the entryway. This side of the house was flush with the yard so there was no porch. Instead a large umbrella was set back a few feet so that guests could stand under it when it rained or was hot out. There was also a ten foot wall about twenty feet from the house, giving the area complete privacy.

There were three men standing at the backdoor, all in their policeman garb. Yashiro, a white-haired man around forty-five and two men in their twenties, Tekka and Inabi. Yashiro and Inabi faced Itachi as he stepped into the foyer, while Tekka kept watch in the yard. Itachi instantly went on alert, noticing that they were present on official business. He also remembered that they were the ones who had been staring at him occasionally with dark expressions. He had blown the whole thing off, but now he wished he had looked into it more.

Itachi spoke with an air of boredom, "What is this? Why are you here?"

Inabi, who had a reputation for picking fights and being a hothead spoke first, in a very angry voice, "Two people didn't show up to last night's meeting. Where were you?"

Itachi didn't feel he needed to explain himself to the trio and instead glared at them.

Inabi continued, "Since you joined ANBU you have helped us out of some very tight situations. Your father has explained it to us and tried to defend you, but we cannot make exceptions!"

"I understand. I'll be careful about what I do in the future. Is that all?" Itachi replied in a bored voice, even though inside he was beginning to feel irritation. He couldn't believe they would come all the way out here just to bug him about some stupid meeting. And they arrived at the blind corner of the house so no one would see them. Were they here to pick a fight?

"There's more. We have some questions for you." Yashiro spoke this time. His voice was angry, but wasn't as emotional as his companions. "Shisui… he also missed the meeting."

Inabi's voice became accusing, "He committed suicide by throwing himself in the Nakano River last night. Everyone knows you two were like brothers."

Itachi felt like a hundred knives had just stabbed him in the heart. He gulped once, then looked down at the floor. "I haven't seen him in awhile. It's…tragic." He tried to keep his voice even as he spoke. The desensitization training he had undergone at the Academy and with Root was the only thing that kept him from collapsing to his knees in sorrow. He was sure of it.

"We, the police, have decided to investigate the matter thoroughly." Inabi glared at Itachi.

"Investigation?" Itachi couldn't imagine what they would be investigating. Suicide was pretty straightforward as far as he was concerned.

Yashiro pulled out a folded piece of paper and held it in his hand. "This was found near the river. The handwriting was examined and it was definitely written by Shisui."

"Then what is the investigation for?" Itachi asked.

"Handwriting is easy to copy with a Sharingan." Inabi replied.

Itachi accepted the note from Yashiro and opened it. Reading it, he understood completely what Shisui had been trying to convey, "I can't run counter to the Path any longer. I'm tired of these missions. At this rate, there's no future for Uchiha. Or for me…" The note was the same one he had seen in his dream and Itachi had to work hard to keep his hand from shaking as he read the words.

"He was one of the most gifted in the clan, the best ever at teleportation." Yashiro's voice was still stern, but it had an edge of sorrow in it as well. "He always signed up first for missions for the sake of the clan."

"He wouldn't give up his life or his clan ties this way." Inabi finished Yashiro's train of thought.

Itachi had started to get angry as the two policemen spoke. He alone knew the mask Shisui had worn, the real reason he had taken all those missions. No one else had bothered to figure it out, or ask him if he was okay. Itachi suddenly felt he had wronged his cousin, his best friend. He should have spent more time with him instead of avoiding him. He should have helped him. And now it was too late. And these three policemen, _clansmen_, were here trying glue Shisui's mask to his corpse's face. He wasn't going to let them get away with it. Grief, regret, guilt, anger, and a million other emotions raced through him as he tried to comprehend the fact that his best friend was gone forever.

"You shouldn't judge people," he paused, his voice had taken a menacing edge and he frowned, "by appearances or preconceptions."

Inabi continued speaking as if he hadn't heard Itachi, "We'll leave the note with you. Take it to ANBU Black Ops and ask them to assist in the investigation."

"Yes." Itachi acknowledged the man's request as the three policemen turned around and walked out of the foyer.

"With any luck we'll get a lead soon." Yashiro looked over his shoulder at Itachi as he stepped out into the yard.

Tekka spoke for the first time, "We have alternative routes into ANBU. Should the note be destroyed we will find out." He was, of course, referring to the spy network that Fugaku had constructed throughout the village.

Itachi felt something in his mind snap. It was something he hadn't felt in a long time. Instant and uncontrollable anger, coupled with a desire to draw blood. His hands stiffened and he heard the piece of paper in his fingers crumple. Clenching his teeth, Itachi's anger leaked out into his words, "Why don't you just come out and say it? You think I killed Shisui."

Itachi and the three policemen instantly activated their Sharingan's. The killing intent radiating off of the four shinobi was strong and Sasuke, who had been hiding behind the doorway clenched at the door frame in fear, unable to move and barely breathing.

"Yes we do... little boy." Inabi said matter-of-factly.

One second later, Yashiro, Inabi, and Tekka were lying on the ground and Itachi was standing over them. He had attacked so quickly that the three policemen, even with their Sharingan's, had not been able to see him.

"As I said a minute ago, do not judge people by appearances or preconceptions. You misjudge me if you think I have patience for you. The clan…the clan…you babble on and on about the clan, but you over-estimate your abilities…and you have no idea about the depth of mine. And now you are crawling around on the ground because of that." Itachi was so angry now, he was having to put forth a monumental effort to keep from attacking them again and drawing blood. The color red was seeping into his mind and he wanted nothing more than to see it leaking out of the policemen's veins. Slowly and painfully.

Sasuke was becoming more and more scared by the minute and his wide eyes looked out into the yard at what his brother had done. 'I've never seen him like this before.' His panicked thoughts yelled inside his mind.

Yashiro sat up and looked at Itachi's angry face. "Shisui had been observing you recently. Keeping tabs. Six months after entering ANBU your actions and words became too strange to overlook. What on earth are you thinking?"

Itachi continued talking, still angry, "You cling to your organization, to the clan and to the name. But you are vain and arrogant and you fear anything outside your understanding. Idiots!"

"Itachi! Stop it!" Fugaku walked up to the group, very angry and upset. "That's enough from you! What is wrong with you anyway? Itachi, I'm worried about your behavior of late."

Itachi put on a tired face, not entirely faked as he suddenly felt exhausted. "Why? I've just been busy with work is all."

"Then where were you last night?" Fugaku asked. Itachi waited a couple minutes before answering.

He thought about Shisui and the conversation they had a couple months ago. His eyes were suddenly burning and he blinked them a few times, thinking he had gotten some dirt in them when he knocked the policemen to the ground. However, he noticed the flow of chakra to his eyes was a little different than it normally was. It felt stronger and the burning sensation changed to a strong pressure. Like someone was pushing on his eyeballs and he was reminded of his dream from the previous evening when the rocks holding down the suicide note were pushed into his eyes. The pressure quickly faded and he opened his eyes, noticing that his Sharingan was a little sharper.

'It can't be.' Itachi thought to himself. He quickly thought about the Sharingan. It had appeared when he had felt the intense emotion of fear and anger. The Mangekyou Sharingan was supposed to come out only after you killed your best friend. But if you did that you felt another intense emotion… guilt and sorrow.

'It can't be.' Itachi's mind kept repeating the phrase. Shisui had found another way to give Itachi the power he needed to stop the coup. The guilt and sorrow did not need to come from a direct action of murder, but could be brought about by death, no matter who killed your best friend. The only way Shisui could have figured it out is if he had spoken to Madara. Yet he no longer owned a bracelet, and Itachi's bracelet was safely hidden in his room. Obviously Shisui had found it.

He remembered the conversation in the woods a couple years ago when Madara had told them there was a way for both of them to gain the Mangekyou Sharingan without killing each other. 'That bastard! It was a half truth to draw them into his world! He tricked us! He always meant for Shisui to die and for me to advance. All those years! All those years…'

Itachi was suddenly brought back to the present and spoke calmly, "I needed to achieve the next state."

Fugaku spoke in a puzzled voice, "What do you mean?" However, he understood exactly what had happened and inside he was secretly pleased. His plans for his eldest son were moving forward. Although, at the same time, he felt sorrow that it was at Shisui's expense. He had been on his way hoping to speak with Itachi about it, after having spent several hours dealing with the issue at the station. He was surprised to see the three policemen already at his house, arguing with Itachi. Fugaku had not known that they would confront him.

Itachi quickly pulled out a kunai. Fugaku reacted with alarm at the wide-eyed look of hatred that suddenly crossed his son's face. Itachi let loose the kunai and it landed in the center of one of the Uchiha fan crests painted on the cement wall. Several cracks formed outward from where the kunai was now imbedded.

"My abilities been repressed by this pathetic clan." Itachi's voice was angry but he spoke quietly.

Sasuke was still watching everything and when he heard his brother's words he wondered why he was ignoring all the praise and kind words directed at him. Father and the clan thought he was the best, yet Itachi was acting like it wasn't enough. How could that be?

"Obsessing over worthless things like clans, you've lost sight of what's really important, like premonition and imagination. You can't achieve real change by binding yourself to regulations and restrictions." He was repeating what Shisui had told him two months ago. How the clan wasn't even considering all their options because they had limited themselves to staying in Konoha and locking their advanced jutsu's.

Inabi scowled, "What insolence!"

Fugaku bent over and helped Yashiro stand up as the other two policemen got up on their own. "Enough!" He yelled loudly at his son. "If you keep speaking this nonsense you're going to prison!"

Fugaku and the three policemen were now standing and looking angrily down at the small boy. And Itachi did look small, almost helpless. He barely came to Fugaku's chest and his bangs were messy and in his face. He was very skinny and his sleight build made him look even smaller. An expression of anger and sorrow was etched in his eyes and he held his mouth in a small frown, almost in an exact imitation of his father's. Barefoot and dressed in black, this was, for all intent and purposes, an eleven-year-old boy standing in front of four powerful, grown men. They had underestimated him, but they refused to believe they had underestimated him by much. They still saw him as a child they could easily intimidate. Everyone that is, except Fugaku.

"Well, Itachi, what is your choice?" Fugaku spoke in a voice that told Itachi in no uncertain words that he knew how to deal with him if he failed to comply. Yet Itachi was annoyed, the word "choice" had come forth again. He hated that word. Every time it was used it was to get him to say something he didn't want to say under the pretense of an option. Yet there were never any options.

Inabi couldn't wait, "This will not be tolerated. Captain, give the arrest order!"

Sasuke panicked. He couldn't understand what was going on. It was so far beyond anything he had ever seen or imagined. Itachi was a good person, yet now he was acting strange and his father and cousins were threatening to arrest him. He wasn't even sure what the charges were. They had been talking about Shisui, then they said Itachi killed Shisui, then they started talking about perceptions and obsessions and clan. Yet Inabi's angry words broke Sasuke out of his fear and, as loud as he could, he yelled.

"Stop it brother!"

Fugaku turned to look at Sasuke, then returned his gaze back to Itachi. His eldest son was close to loosing control and if he did it would be disastrous. Especially if the policemen attacked and Itachi killed one of them. If he was forced to stop Itachi, the boy would be severely injured, putting him out of commission.

Itachi heard his brother and suddenly came to his senses. What was he doing? And Sasuke was watching! It wasn't something he wanted his brother to see. He didn't want Sasuke to witness his dark side.

Dropping to his knees he bent forward, kowtowing. Fugaku was shocked by his son's quick change of behavior.

"I did not kill Shisui, but I apologize for my inappropriate remarks. I am very sorry." Itachi put on a face of deep sorrow, but inside he was still seething with hatred.

Fugaku watched Itachi apologize, then closed his eyes in resignation. "Lately, he has been overworked by ANBU. He is tired out."

Inabi was not convinced and yelled in indignation, "Captain!"

"ANBU is under the Lord Hokage's direct authority and we cannot arrest him without a warrant. As for my son, I will take responsibility for him."

The three policemen looked at their captain, not wanting to go along with his words.

Fugaku bowed his head slightly and, at great cost to his pride said, "Please."

The policemen were shocked by what Fugaku had just done and said. They recognized the sacrifice and after a moment Inabi calmed down and said "Understood." They turned around and started walking away.

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Fugaku walked toward the house, "Itachi, inside."

Sasuke kept watching Itachi, even as Fugaku walked past him. Itachi had turned his head and was looking at their father with such intense hatred that Sasuke found himself unable to turn away even if he had wanted to. His brother's three tomoe Sharingan was drawing the boy in. Slowly he saw the tomoe's become longer until they stretched from the pupil to the outside of the iris. Sasuke had never seen a Sharingan like that and continued to stare at his brother until his eyes returned to their normal black a few seconds later.

Itachi stood up and walked into the house without acknowledging Sasuke. He turned to go to his room, but Fugaku grabbed his collar. "Sasuke, find someplace outside to go. Don't return for another hour." He waited until the boy, who was now shaking visibly, left the house, then dragged Itachi, literally, to his meeting room and threw him on the floor.

"Do you have any idea how much damage control that little temper tantrum of yours is going to require!" He yelled at the top of his lungs at his son. Itachi almost cringed, realizing he hadn't seen his father this angry in years. "The police, the clan and our ANBU tails saw the whole god damned performance!" He bent down and hit Itachi across the face, knocking him back down onto the floor.

Itachi didn't get up from the floor or say anything. Fugaku bent down and pulled his son up until he was standing, then hit him again, knocking him into the wall. He grabbed the boy by the neck and squeezed.

"Show me your eyes." Fugaku hissed, "I know you have it." He squeezed harder and Itachi coughed, then blinked a couple times. His black eyes formed the Sharingan, then bled into a new form.

Fugaku let go of Itachi's neck and the boy dropped to the floor, breathing deeply to catch his breath. "Just be lucky you got the Mangekyou from Shisui's sacrifice. I suppose Madara told him that you could gain it if he killed himself, but I have to tell you that, as always, Madara was giving half truths and lies. The fact is, the emotion one feels from killing one's best friend is a hundred times worse than what one feels if that friend is murdered by someone else or suicide. However, in rare circumstances an individual is born who can feel that emotion through guilt and sorrow. Somehow, Madara knew you were that person and convinced Shisui to kill himself. Surprising really, considering you are most likely a sociopath and incapable of normal emotion. Then again, maybe that is why it worked."

Itachi continued to look at his father with his new eyes. He was feeling a dull ache beginning to form in the middle of his forehead. "Why do you know so much about it?"

"I am clan leader, Itachi. You were speaking about not wanting people to underestimate you, yet you have underestimated me." Fugaku's voice was a little different from the way he usually talked. He was now calmer and radiating powerful chakra. Itachi almost felt like he was standing in front of Madara. Had he really underestimated his father? "I have the power to take out the Hokage. I can kill him, Itachi. And I will. Uchiha will find a new way in this village, and you will help by performing the duties and missions for which you were assigned."

Itachi stood up and looked at his father. He wasn't afraid anymore, he had passed that point a long time ago. However, he did want to know why his father believed he had the power to defeat the Hokage.

"I see you don't believe me. Very well, so be it. A sample of my power is in order then, would you say?" Fugaku frowned, and Itachi frowned back at him.

"Yes."

"Then wait. There is a man I will have to fight soon. The Stone Kage. I received a request from a third party to perform an assassination. You alone will accompany me. Prepare, we leave in two days."

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The funeral was the next morning. Everyone in the clan attended, including several villagers who were good friends of Shisui. Toshiro and Kisa were inconsolable. Kisa couldn't stop moaning and crying and Toshiro had collapsed onto his knees, hiding his face in the dirt as his body shook with his silent sobs. Aya was sitting on her foster mothers lap sideways, with her arms around the woman's neck. She refused to open her eyes, and her mother was holding her so tight that it looked like she was going to squish her.

Itachi stood with his family as the monk read the funerary rights. Sasuke was leaning against him and holding his hand tightly, Itachi had to squeeze back at one point to get him to loosen his grip a little. He looked down and saw that the boy was trying as hard as he could to not cry, as was his mother. Itachi and his father had no tears. They had already been shed in private and would never be shown to the clan.

Listening to the prayer the monk was speaking, Itachi's mind wandered back to the previous day, a couple hours after the confrontation with the police. He had left his house and made his way to the temple where the body was being kept.

_Itachi was surprised at how peaceful the teenager had looked, lying on a table with incense burning around him, and for a minute he was jealous that it was Shisui lying there and not him. To be able to sleep without a care in the world. But he quickly came to his senses, after all, Shisui was not sleeping and would never again wake up._

"_Shisui. I know what I must do… but it isn't as simple as you made it sound. I promise though… I will find a way to stop this. I will not let your sacrifice go to waste." As if in answer a votive candle that was sputtering and flickering suddenly came to life, burning brightly. Itachi watched it, fascinated, for several minutes without being aware of time passing. Many memories and feelings passed through Itachi's mind and heart as he stood there. Shisui had been his only playmate, and the person he looked up to the most. It was hard to imagine that he was now all alone. _

'_I still have Sasuke.' Itachi's mind whispered. He looked at his cousin lying on the long table and realized that unless he wanted to see Sasuke in the same position he was going to have to try his hardest to stop the coup._

"_Itachi." Toshiro's soft voice made Itachi jump. He slowly turned around, wiping his eyes as he did. "Itachi. I heard what the policemen said to you. I want you to know that Kisa and I don't believe you did this. You would… never…" He stopped, trying to bring himself back under control._

"_Thank-you." Itachi suddenly realized how much it meant to him to hear Toshiro say that. "I'm very sorry… I wish I could have stopped him… I wish… I wish I had known what to do..."_

_Toshiro walked over and put his arms around the boy. "It's okay. We all missed it. We'll all suffer for this until the end of our days."_

_Itachi reached up and grabbed Toshiro's forearms, suddenly alarmed. "Don't do anything, Toshiro. I'm sure Shisui didn't do this with the desire to have you and Kisa follow him into darkness."_

_Toshiro stepped back at looked at Itachi. "Humph. You are very observant, Itachi. More so than people believe. But… too many people have died… and soon… more will follow." He turned around and left the room. However, another presence was soon felt and Itachi felt his anger returning._

"_This is always the hardest part of a shinobi's life." Madara had teleported into the room._

"_And you could have stopped it!" Itachi hissed at the masked man who was now standing next to Shisui's body. Madara removed one glove then reached down and stroked the boy's hair and cheek._

"_Itachi, I could no more have stopped him than I could drain the oceans and fit the water into a two foot square cube. He had made up his mind to give you the power to defeat your father." Madara's spoke quietly so the people in the main hall of the temple wouldn't hear him._

"_What do you know of sacrifice?" Itachi hissed at him._

"_How do you think I got these eyes? My own eyesight failing Izuna offered me his." Madara paused a moment when he registered that Itachi didn't recognize the name. "My younger brother. Anyway, I refused at first, but the clan was falling apart without my leadership. People argued and enemies took advantage of us. Finally, I had no choice and took him up on his offer. He died in battle shortly after. He was hell-bent on his path and when Shisui spoke to me the other day, it was as if… as of I were speaking to my own brother again." Madara's candid answer took Itachi by surprise. His anger dissipated and he returned his gaze to Shisui. "As if…" Madara's voice became soft, "his soul had re-incarnated into Shisui…"_

"_I may not be powerful enough to take him out. He and I will be leaving the day after tomorrow. He is going to assassinate the Stone Kage. I can't fight at that level. It will take years before that happens." Itachi sighed in frustration. His eyes were still alternating between a burning sensation and a throbbing pressure. He closed them and put his hands over his face. He felt a hand cover his and he dropped his own hands to his side. Madara pushed chakra into Itachi's eyes, relieving the pain._

"_Does that feel better?" He asked in a kind voice._

"_Yes. I don't know why it hurts."_

"_The Mangekyou Sharingan is painful to use for long periods of time so you need to use it sparingly. However, because it is new to you, you will have to build up your tolerance very gradually. Right now, you can only stand it for a few seconds. Over the next three or four months try to build up that tolerance until you can keep it going for ten minutes. I will then train you in several new techniques." _

_Itachi thought he should be shocked that Madara knew about his new Sharingan, but decided that, like his father, there was no way he wouldn't know._

"_About your father. I underestimated him when I first met him, years ago. It cost me greatly, as I lost control of the Kyuubi. Fugaku is powerful, although he is nowhere near my level. You must also realize that Mikoto is his equal, perhaps even more powerful. You shouldn't turn your back on either of them. That is why she is being included so closely in Fugaku's plot. She is going to actively fight._

"_I am the one that commissioned the assassination, Itachi. Fugaku does not realize it, so don't let him know. It is a test. The Stone Kage is second only to Sarutobi._

"_And one more thing. Fugaku is afraid of you Itachi. He recognizes your potential and knows that one day you will grow to be more powerful than him. He even goes so far as to wonder, sometimes, if he should have killed you when you were young. Perhaps that is why he would beat you so severely, subconsciously hoping you would die. As clan leader he would have gotten away with it."_

_Itachi nodded in understanding. It was a lot to think about, but all he could really understand clearly as he stood listening to Madara's words and looking at Shisui's body was that other eleven-year-olds were probably watching TV now and doing their homework, wondering what was for dinner and snacking on cookies. If Fugaku and Madara didn't exist to mess up his life so thoroughly, then he, Shisui and Sasuke would be doing just that right now. Instead, he was standing in a temple with Madara, next to Shisui's dead body, and Sasuke was hiding in his room afraid to make any noise or come out because of what had happened earlier in the day. _

Returning to the present Itachi realized that the ceremony was over and Sasuke was now standing facing him with his small hands clenched in his shirt and his head buried in the fabric. His shoulders were shaking and Itachi could feel tears wetting his shirt, but the boy made no sound. Mikoto ran her fingers through Sasuke's hair and gently pulled him away from Itachi, guiding him back to the house.

Itachi stood where he was for a long time and when he finally decided to leave he realized he was the only one still outside. He also realized, for the first time, that it was sunny out. He could have sworn it was cloudy earlier, but maybe it wasn't. He also couldn't hear anything. No radios or TV's, no talking, the stores in the Uchiha district were all closed. The place, for all intents and purposes looked deserted.

"So this is what it would look like if everyone was dead." Itachi had no idea why he said that. A chill went up his spine and he looked around in a panic. He remembered the dream, it was a recurring dream he had for years, since he was four or five. He walked down the main street of the compound with a bloody sword, wondering where all the ghosts were.

And at that point Itachi knew the truth. The Sharingan did foresee the future. He had seen the night of his father's death, and he was the one who killed him. But… who else had he killed? "Only one way to find out, Shisui, and that's to move forward into the future. If you can help me, maybe send me some dreams. You and Obito and Yurina and Yota. Maybe you can all help me. And if you want, I'll get Aki for you."

Itachi turned around and walked back to his house. He had a mission to prepare for. His mission was to stop the impending coup, and his first assignment was to gather as much intelligence on his father as he could. The lives of several thousand people depended on him, as did the memory of his best friend.

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**Please review**

**(long A/N ahead… might answer some of your questions)**

**I already miss Shisui… **

**quotes taken from Chpt 221 & 222 & 223**

**Reference source – the Viz media publication of Naruto volume 25 (there are a lot of other unofficial translations, but I decided to use the "official" one, even if it is sometimes a little "off" – for example, Deidara's clay birds are called "dolls" argghhh!)**

**Itachi has definitely changed a lot. He is older and starting to gain the experience he needs to understand the world around him, and to control his emotions. The Itachi from three years ago would have tried to kill the policemen, but the older Itachi knows he shouldn't do that and stops himself.**

**I was a little surprised to read chpt 222 and realize that Shisui died only 6 months after Itachi joined ANBU, about 2 years before the massacre. But then again, that's a lot of time to learn how to use the Mangekyou Sharingan. **

**The next part of chpt 223 will happen in two years time (story time that is). So that is several chapters from now. As you know, Sasuke is laying in bed and says that the confrontation with the police happened a long time ago but Itachi and Fugaku haven't gotten along since then. **

**The Anime, for some reason, draws Itachi as being older when this happens (well, it's probably slightly easier to get a 16 year old killing his clan past the censors than it is an 11 or 12 year old). He should be the same height as Sasuke in the first episodes of Naruto, but instead he looks about sixteen and his voice is older too. The Manga, on the other hand, draws him the correct height. I know this has caused a lot of arguing on forums, but I always take the word of the manga over what happens in the anime. **

**Also, the line "We have alternative routes into ANBU. Should the note be destroyed we will find out." Is curious. I think they may have had more spies than just Itachi, but Itachi was the main resource.**

**I realized I didn't have a Shisui and Aya moment and I had to stick one in. And before you say too much, Shisui is only 13 and Aya is 14 so kissing is all they were going to do xD. The ghost voice bit was just dramatic effect, Shisui isn't coming back sob **

**Please review**


	48. Chapter 48 Across the Border

**Last week Shisui sacrificed himself in order to give Itachi the Mangekyou Sharingan. Fugaku accused Itachi of underestimating him and decided to take him on a mission to kill the Stone Kage.**

**Thanks for all the reviews, **

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto, and Itachi and Deidara and Sakura and Sasuke and Ino and, well, everyone. Including You! xD**

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**Chapter 48 – Across the Border**

The Uchiha compound was dark and quiet when Itachi got up. The early July morning was warm and Itachi groaned as he realized it was going to be hot out, and he would be traveling all day with his father, the one person in the whole world he did not want to be with right now. Then he groaned again when he saw the sacks sitting on his table.

The previous day the clan had buried Shisui. But it had also been Sasuke's birthday. And tomorrow it would be Sheeta's birthday. After getting dressed he picked up the two sacks and walked out of his room. His mother and father were already awake and in the kitchen. Mikoto poked her head out and in a low voice asked him not to disturb Sasuke.

"He had trouble getting to sleep last night and I ended up giving him one of your old pills. I know I shouldn't have done it, but I was really worried about him. I just looked in on him a few minutes ago and he was sleeping peacefully." Her face was drawn and pale and her eyes were still red. He wondered if she had even bothered to go to bed the previous night.

Itachi closed his eyes and sighed. "I'll just put his present on his desk, then. I'll be quiet."

"Oh dear. I forgot." Mikoto covered her mouth and Itachi was afraid she was going to start crying again.

Fugaku's voice sounded from inside the kitchen. "Come back and finish your tea, Mikoto. I don't think Sasuke felt much like celebrating yesterday anyway. Don't worry about it."

Itachi placed the wrapped present on his brother's desk and looked at the sleeping boy. His face was scrunched up, as if he were having a nightmare. Itachi considered waking him up, but decided against it. Hopefully the dream would fade after he awoke in a few hours and he wouldn't remember it.

"This is for Sheeta, can you give it to her please, Mother?" Itachi placed a smaller sack on the kitchen table. It was, once again, from the jewelry store.

"What did you get her?" Mikoto smiled, but Itachi could see it was forced.

"Some earrings to match the necklace I got her last year. She'll have to get her ears pierced so I also included a coupon for that as well." Itachi gave his mother a small smile that was also forced, then started to eat his breakfast.

"I think she'll love it. Her mother was saying it was time she started acting like a little girl instead of a tomboy." Mikoto tried to make small talk.

"What will happen to Aya?" Itachi asked quietly.

"You went to bed early, so you didn't hear. Fumitake was taken to the hospital late last night. The shock was too much for him.

"Aya is still young, and it is unlikely she will be put into another arranged marriage. At least not that I can foresee." Mikoto answered him in an exhausted voice. Fugaku nodded his assent to his wife's observation.

"So when we return…" Itachi knew what was going to happen.

"Don't hold his body, Mikoto. Bury him right away, as custom dictates. It is unfortunate this mission has come up now, but I don't know how long it will take. To loose two young men so close together is tragic, even if one of them is expected." Fugaku sounded tired and Itachi was a little surprised. He usually never heard much emotion in the man's voice. However, he knew that the sentiment would not extend outside clan, to the villagers he was planning to kill in his coup.

Itachi sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "Is it time to leave now?" He just wanted to get away all of a sudden. Anywhere.

"Yeah. Let's go." Fugaku stood up and walked out of the kitchen, followed by Itachi and Mikoto. However, he stopped walking and looked at Sasuke's closed door for a minute. "What did you get him, Itachi?" He asked quietly.

The boy blinked in surprise. Fugaku rarely showed much interest in his youngest son. "I… um… got him what he asked me to get him. A book on lightening element jutsu's."

Fugaku smirked. "You are remarkable, Mikoto. To think an Earth element woman could give birth to two son's, one Fire element and one Lightening element."

"On more mystery of Chakra, I guess. Although you are also Fire element so that can explain Itachi, I guess." She gave a real smile to her husband and son.

'Flattery.' Itachi thought to himself. Although he did feel a _little_ bit better, seeing his mother's smile.

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The horizon was just turning white with the promise of a sunny day as Fugaku led his son down the street of the compound. As they passed Toshiro's house Fugaku stopped and looked up at the porch. Toshiro rose from his chair and walked down the steps to join them.

"Guess who they pulled out of the Nakano river a couple hours ago?" Toshiro gave a tired, half smile to the pair. His face and slumped posture gave the impression of one who had not slept for days.

"Aki Nojima?" Itachi hoped his guess was right.

"Yep. His suicide note said that Shisui was haunting him." Toshiro looked up at the sky.

Fugaku looked down at Itachi with a curious expression on his face. "I just hope it was either a real ghost or a clansman using Genjutsu to scare him."

"Wasn't me." Itachi frowned as he muttered under his breath. It would have been a perfect plan, though. And he wouldn't mind having the police force catch him at it either.

"…and not a plot by Danzou or ANBU to accuse us of using Sharingan to influence 'innocent' villagers." Fugaku sighed.

Toshiro leaned in close, so no one else would hear. "It wasn't." The man then turned around started walking back to his chair on the porch, then replied, almost cheerfully, "Have a nice trip!"

Fugaku and Itachi were a little shocked, but at least Toshiro seemed to be feeling better. They then noticed that Kisa was sitting in the chair next to him and she smiled weekly and waved. Father and son waved back to her.

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"Sasuke is doing very well in his Academy subjects. First in everything. I must say I'm very proud of my son." Madara was sitting in the kitchen sipping a cup of tea when Mikoto returned to the house after running her morning errands. The tall man was holding Sasuke's school report in his hand and smiling.

Caught off guard Mikoto placed her purchases on the counter and looked at him suspiciously.

"Sit down, Mikoto love, have some tea." He moved a cup that had been sitting in the center of the table and poured tea in it.

Mikoto sat down and picked up the cup. "Thank-you." She took a couple sips and stared at the table. She didn't really feel like talking. She had slept fitfully the previous night and she was worried about Sasuke. The young boy was exhausted and stressed out from his brother's confrontation, Shisui's death, and Fumitake's hospitalization. He was currently at Academy's practice grounds throwing shuriken at targets, even though it was summer break. She had watched him for a few minutes and noticed that not only was he was throwing the small knives very aggressively but he kept wiping tears from his eyes.

"I'm sure all your children did well in school. How many do you have?" Mikoto felt she had to say something. The silence was starting to become uncomfortable.

"Enough. Too many. Not enough." He smirked.

"So you have only Sasuke right now?" She asked quietly.

"Fishing for information already? We haven't even made it to the bedroom yet." Madara's voice was low and held a hint of seduction.

"Madara, please. I can't. Shisui just died and Fumitake will follow him soon. I'm just not…" She put her cup down and wiped her eyes quickly.

"I understand. I just dropped by on my way to somewhere else. I saw Itachi's little temper tantrum, though. He's become very powerful. Those policemen have no idea how lucky they are to still be alive."

"I know. I know. Itachi is overworked by ANBU, Akatsuki and Uchiha. He can't handle it at such a young age. I pray Sasuke is allowed to have a normal childhood, as normal a ninja can have that is." Mikoto sniffed and wiped her eyes again. Madara reached over and stroked her hair.

"What's going to happen when he cracks? Fugaku and I can handle him, but if we aren't around…" Mikoto looked up and saw that Madara had moved closer and was wrapping his arms around her.

"Then there will be a lot of blood to clean up, I imagine." Madara bent down and captured her lips with his. Surprisingly, Mikoto found that she wanted to be close to him and she returned the kiss eagerly, raising her arms she wrapped them around his neck, threading her fingers in his soft hair.

Releasing the kiss so they could catch their breath, Mikoto moved one of her hands and placed it on his chest. "I think… can you make me forget everything … for a little while?" She rested her head over his heart and closed her eyes, concentrating on its steady rhythm.

"Of course." He picked her up in his arms and carried her to the bedroom, throwing small bag on the table as they left the kitchen.

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Father and son made good time in their journey west across Fire Country, arriving at a large border town two days after leaving Konoha. They had outwitted their ANBU tails a few minutes after leaving Konoha. Although ANBU no doubt eventually realized their mistake, it would have been too late to follow them.

The town they walked into was busy with shoppers, travelers and merchants all trying to navigate the narrow roads simultaneously. It was nearing dinner time and everyone seemed anxious to get their errands done and get home.

Three and four story, mismatched buildings lined either side of the twelve foot wide roads throughout the city. For all intents and purposes it looked like the town's founders had built the wall first then tried to fit as much as possible inside of it. Most growing towns would extend the wall, but not this one.

Fugaku led his son through the narrow streets for about forty minutes before he stopped in front of a building. Itachi looked up and narrowed his eyes at his father. The man had obviously gone insane.

"I can't stay here! I'm still eleven!" Itachi stared at the blinking "Girls! Girls! Girls!" sign that blatantly covered two thirds of the four story building.

"Quit complaining and get inside." Fugaku pushed the boy's shoulders lightly and they walked through the entryway.

"Hey! Get that kid out of here!" A large man, about two hundred and fifty pounds of muscle stood in Fugaku's path. Itachi stepped back, hoping there was going to be a fight.

Fugaku just looked up at him with a bored expression. "Just give him a room to sleep and I'll have a deluxe room."

"Fine. But that'll be extra." The man moved aside and an elderly man sitting behind a desk took Fugaku's money and handed him two keys. He then handed him a loose-leaf notebook and Fugaku opened it and started turning the pages. Itachi didn't look to see what it was. He was looking, instead, at two women who had just walked into the lobby from a back room. They were both wearing the skimpiest bathing suits he had ever seen. And… it looked _very nice_. He suddenly wondered if Sheeta would look like them when she grew up. He _really_ hoped so.

Itachi's concentration was broken when he noticed that the old man, bouncer and Fugaku were laughing at him and he quickly pried his eyes away from the women.

"Looks like your son knows a good body when he sees one!" The old man said between chuckles.

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"That was quite a look you were giving them, Itachi." Fugaku said as they climbed the stairs.

"I just…" Itachi felt his face turn red.

Fugaku resisted the urge to tease him further. He knew Itachi was still very angry at him for what happened the other day and he didn't want to push it. The boy tended to hang on to his anger for a very long time. "I ordered room service for you, so it will come in about thirty minutes. There is no meal choice here, so you'll have to eat what they bring. It's good food though so no worries."

Itachi took his key from his father when they arrived at his room and he opened the door. It was very small but it had a window and its own bathroom.

"They always keep some rooms reserved in the staff area for guests who don't wish to indulge in their other services. I'll come get you in the morning." Fugaku started to walk away.

"What about mother?" Itachi said quietly. He didn't feel like arguing with his father, but he couldn't keep his mouth shut either.

"What about her?" Fugaku smirked.

"She… you guys are married. I could never…" Itachi blushed again, then got mad at himself for showing emotion.

"Mikoto is a kunoichi. You are ANBU, Itachi. Your training should have shown you, in graphic detail, what that means." He didn't bother turning around, but spoke to his son with his back to him.

"But… she doesn't do that now… she's married and…"

Fugaku gave a good humored laugh. "Mikoto has missions of _that_ type now. Every time I leave the village her mission is to use her body to gain information. She is exceptionally good at it. Of course, she has years of experience."

Itachi suddenly felt sick. The training he had undergone had included topics of _that_ type, including videos, photos, and text. But Itachi didn't actually think much of it. The recruits were told that no one under eighteen would be allowed on such a mission, but because other villages or enemies might use seduction to gain information or turn them to the other side they needed to know what to expect and how to turn things around to their own advantage.

"So… you are here because she is…" Itachi was feeling very uncomfortable talking about this and looked at the floor. He could feel his face was still red. 'Blushing! I can't even control it!' Itachi though bitterly to himself.

"It has nothing to do with your mother. Although I do pick up different 'techniques' in places like these and teach them to her, then she can use them later." Fugaku snickered. "We can talk more tomorrow when we leave the village." He walked back to the stairwell and disappeared up the stairs.

Itachi started to walk into his room when he heard a cart rolling down the hall. "Are you the young man waiting for room service?" An old lady's timid voice asked kindly.

"Yes. Bring it inside." Itachi held the door open while the woman carried a tray inside and placed it on a small table.

"Just put everything outside the door when you finish." She said as she left.

"I just keep finding more and more reasons to hate that man." Itachi said as he sat on a cushion and scooted up next to the table. And his mother? He couldn't believe Mikoto would do such things, especially after what happened with Madara a few years back. But then again, she was planning on helping Fugaku with his coup. Perhaps he had been wrong about her.

However, another thought raced through his mind. Where was she doing her "mission" at? Was Sasuke there? He had a sudden image of an anonymous male walking into the house, patting little Sasuke on the head as he gave him a piece of candy, then leading a coy Mikoto to the bedroom.

"Damn it!" Itachi yelled loudly, then dropped his head onto the table. Was nothing ever as it seemed?

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Itachi lay on the bed after he ate, his thoughts taking over as he attempted to meditate. It was hard to believe that only a week earlier Shisui had still been alive. Only one week. A few days. The past kept playing through his mind like a movie that couldn't be stopped. His fourth birthday party, their trip to the hideout, training with Madara, school, and the many clan missions they went on together. All the "video" showed was a happy boy who looked forward to the future. Fugaku had taken all of that away, and Mikoto was his accomplice.

He thought back to what Toshiro had said in the temple. "_… too many people have died… and soon… more will follow."_

Toshiro had always been one of Fugaku's most trusted lieutenants. He had heard stories about how he had befriended the younger Fugaku when they were growing up. Because of Fugaku's father the other boys were afraid of him, but Toshiro had been able to look past that. So what had his words meant? If it was someone else he would have assumed he was regretting the upcoming coup, but coming from Toshiro it had to mean something else. But what?

Kisa had not liked the fact that Shisui was a ninja. She had nightmares and had even required therapy.

"Nightmares!" Itachi sat up quickly. "Kisa also has nightmares. Are they the same as mine? Can she see the future? Did she know this was going to happen?" Itachi's voice registered his shock as he spoke into the darkened room. The sun had gone down while he had been reminiscing and it was approaching midnight.

Itachi wondered what would happen if he spoke to Kisa about it. She had tried to change reality, to prevent Shisui from becoming a ninja, but it hadn't worked. However, the circumstances of his death were different from the dream he had several years ago.

_The dark evening covered the bodies of two trespassers. They walked alongside the river, the smaller of them with his head down walking behind the taller one who looked straight ahead. It was late, around midnight, or maybe later._

"_Itachi, the water is deep enough here."_

"_We can fight and no one will suspect."_

"_Then you can…" _

_A feeling of time having passed and the area next to the river was wet. Only one person was standing._

"_My body…."_

_A sudden feeling of loss and loneliness, of power and strength, of fear and terror._

Did this mean that Shisui was going to die, no matter what, but the circumstances of his death were changeable? However, in that dream from long ago it was not clear who had won. He had not recognized the two people in the dream at the time, but it was obvious now that it was Shisui and himself. He kept replaying the dream over and over in his mind but he couldn't make out the voice of the "winner".

"So it isn't that Shisui was destined to die. It was the act of obtaining the Mangekyou Sharingan that was destined. Who received it was always up in the air. Is that how these dreams work?"

He laid back down on the bed and closed his eyes. The other dream that consistently bothered him, the one about Konoha in ruins and Sasuke crying. Could that mean that Konoha was destined to fall, but the people involved were interchangeable? If events went one way, Sasuke would mourn the death of his friends. If events went another way, perhaps they would be able to escape.

"This is just going around in circles." Itachi was quickly becoming frustrated. He found that he had trouble imagining a future without Konoha falling. Yet he wanted to avoid that future. He wanted the village safe, to always be there. Even if he wasn't.

"Is this how Shisui felt, right before he made the decision to die?"

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A couple hours after they had crossed out of Fire country and into Grass country Fugaku broke the silence that had followed them all morning. "The woman I was with last night used to work in the Stone Kage tower as a mistress. She was expelled after she tried to kill one of the other mistresses."

Itachi's eyes opened wide with shock, "How many did he have and how come he didn't get in trouble for it?"

Fugaku chuckled. "He has twelve at the moment, and generally no one questions a Kage. He holds the power of life and death over the heads of his people. Sarutobi is no different.

"Anyway, I got word that he had kicked her out of his household and she was working at the place we stayed last night. I arranged to visit her so I could extract information about her ex-boss. I got everything I needed. It turns out she knew much more than I had imagined."

"Oh. So you didn't have sex with her then." Itachi hadn't realized that people in brothels could be information sources.

"Yes, I did. Why not? Anyway, have I made my point?" Fugaku looked down at his son, who was still frowning.

"Yeah." He gave an affirmative answer more to end the conversation than because he believed what his father had said. 'All he ever does is use people. Everyone is a pawn to him.' His thoughts were dark and brooding the rest of the trip and he spoke only when spoken to.

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Arriving at the Stone village Fugaku and Itachi used Genjutsu to slip past the gate guards. They walked around for a while, looking at the layout of the village, checking the guards, and getting a general feel for the security of the village. They then left to scout the layout of the land that surrounded it. Fugaku told Itachi that he was looking for a good place to fight.

"How are you going to lure him out? Why would he fight you?" Itachi asked curiously. After all, the Stone Kage had no gripe with Fugaku so why would he want to fight him?

Fugaku smiled and opened a scroll. He bit his thumb, drawing blood then swiped it across the scroll. Immediately a white cat with a black spot of fur over its left eye appeared in a puff of smoke.

"Good evening, Fugaku. I see you brought the kitten with you. Going camping?" The cat sat on his haunches and stared up at the clan lord.

"Ah, cat. I need you to deliver a message to the Stone Kage." Fugaku's voice was pleasant as he opened another scroll, sat down and started writing. Itachi moved closer so he could read over his father's shoulder. He was writing out, in detail the exact numbers of Genin, Chuunin, Jounin, special forces and ANBU. He then wrote out the exact time the Kage woke up, ate, had meetings, visited his "lady friends" and went to bed. He also included the times the guards changed and their routes through the city. At the end of the note he put in a PS and included the schedules for his five children and the order in which each would be killed should he fail to show up for a personal meeting.

"Would you really kill them if he didn't show up?" Itachi asked quietly.

"Itachi, are you ANBU or not? Of course I would. This is a mission and the clan is getting one hell of a lot of money for it. Also, after the Stone Kage is killed it will take some time for them to find a new one and for the new Kage to establish his position. That means when I take out the Hokage, Stone will be too busy with internal affairs to attack us." Fugaku was beginning to wonder about his son's abilities. Itachi had always been so eager to complete missions, to grow and learn new things, but now he questioning everything. He almost sounded at times like he didn't want to be a ninja anymore.

Itachi didn't answer. Instead he walked away and sat against a rock, looking around at the area his father had chosen for the battle. It was a huge flat plain that had a slight slope towards the village. It was perhaps a square mile. There were a few boulders the size of houses, but other than that it was all dirt with a few sparse plants and no trees. As far as he was concerned the area offered the advantage to the Kage. Lots of dirt and rocks. Perfect for an Earth element user. Looking up he saw that there was a cliff about a quarter mile away. It should be a perfect spot for observing the fight.

The cat left quietly after Fugaku attached the scroll to his back. After that, a fire was built (utilizing coal instead of wood) and dinner was cooked. The fight was scheduled for the next day at 9am. The youngest child's death was schedule for 11am if the Kage failed to come.

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"Who is it that threatens the security of my village!" The blond man's voice echoed through the rocky plain and Itachi breathed a sigh a relief, seeing that the man had come exactly at 9am.

"Fugaku Uchiha." Fugaku stepped into view, announcing his name.

"Why are you here?" The Kage was around thirty-five, about six-foot tall, very muscular and wore the signature blond top-knot. He had come dressed in brown pants and a black fishnet shirt. He wore boots instead of the standard ninja sandals.

"To kill you." Fugaku sent a large fireball at the Kage, then disappeared.

"You are the one who is going to die!" He easily avoided the fireball, jumping up onto one of the large, house-sized boulders.

"Did Madara send you?" The Kage started weaving hand signs, and the area came alive with rocks that were streaking around where Fugaku had materialized.

"As a matter of fact he did." Fugaku's admission made Itachi step back in shock. He figured it out? How?

"That bastard stole my best student from me and turned him against me. I won't stand still for any more of his interferences!" The Kage was, to put it lightly, mad. His tower had been blown up a few months earlier, killing about three dozen people. Rebuilding had just finished a few short weeks ago. However, repercussions for that terrorist attack were still ongoing. His judgment was being questioned – after all, the attack was carried out by a ten year old boy whom the Kage had taken in as a student two years earlier. He even lived in the tower and ate with his own children.

Yet the Kage had trouble hating the child. If he was completely gone, completely evil, why did he tell the children to leave the building before he blew it up? Why did he wait until lunch hour, when most of the workers would be outside the building? Usually the Kage ate lunch in his office, but the boy didn't know that he had left on a lunch date with one of his mistresses. It was only fate, or perhaps chance, that he was still alive.

Itachi reasoned that the bombing Shisui had mentioned to him a couple months earlier was probably due to Deidara following orders from Madara. Did that mean he was already in Akatsuki? Itachi hadn't met all the members, and didn't even know their names. He only knew of Leader, Kisame, Kakuzu, Zetsu, Sasori and Orochimaru. He had deduced that there were probably ten members, since each person wore a ring on a different finger. However, Madara had been adamant about not letting the boy find out about him. Even going so far as to disguise his appearance when in Deidara's presence. So how had the Stone Kage found out about him? How had Madara influenced the boy enough to blow up the Kage building? Was Fugaku here now because Deidara had failed?

And then there was the issue of Fugaku. If he hated Madara so much, why would he accept the mission knowing it came from him? Sure, taking out a potential rival was good planning, but was that the only reason? Perhaps, Itachi mused as he watched Fugaku deflect a river of mud by baking it with a fire jutsu, he was testing his skills against a superior shinobi to see if he really could take out a Kage. Kind of like a "dress rehearsal".

The battle was heating up. The Kage had a large scratch across his chest and was limping. Fugaku was a little dirty, but otherwise unscathed. Itachi didn't find that too unusual, since Fire element users naturally trumped Earth element users. However, skill and abilities could sway that balance either way.

"How is it you know about Madara?" Fugaku asked the Kage sternly.

"We confiscated an Uchiha body during the war. Part of it was crushed but we figured it would still be of some use. The body disappeared, and shortly afterward a man wearing an orange mask revealing a sharingan eye that would have been on the intact side of the body shows up in Rain country. A couple of the elders tracked him down from a distance and said he was Madara. He must have used a forbidden jutsu to take over the corpse since he would have been in his ninety's at least." The Kage smirked. "I don't know what your clan is up to, reviving that sadist, but we intend to fight him to the last man."

Fugaku laughed, surprising the Kage. "So the body disappeared. No wonder we couldn't find it. Well, we don't know how Madara is still alive, but I doubt he's a body stealer, and if he was why would he take one that was half crushed? Dead bodies can't be healed."

The Kage blew off Fugaku's explanation and started to form a series of signs as the ground shook violently. Fugaku, who had his Sharingan activated, repeated the same signs simultaneously. The jutsu consisted of thirty-seven signs, a number almost unheard of in the shinobi world. Itachi dropped to the ground in a crouch, prepared to move quickly if something came his way.

Several boulders, including the two house size ones, started to move slightly, then roll together in two groupings. One was near the Kage and the other near Fugaku. Smaller boulders rolled up the side of the house size one, forming arms and a head. More boulders rolled under it, forming legs. When finished, there were two giant rock monsters between fifty and sixty feet height.

The Kage's monster started stamping his feet on the ground, and Fugaku's copied the action. The surrounding area shook and Itachi noticed a large crack forming beside him on the cliff. He quickly jumped back ten feet as part of the embankment collapsed.

The monsters stopped stamping the ground and opened their mouths. Sharp projectile type rocks, about an inch long, shot out at high speeds. Both the Kage and Fugaku ended up having to jump away from the monsters. Fugaku quickly jumped on top of his and send a massive fireball toward the other monster. It melted the face slightly, and an arm fell off as the clay in one of the rocks baked and cracked. Now only Fugaku's rock monster was spitting projectiles.

The Kage released his monster and the rocks fell to the ground. However, it caused him to become distracted for a couple seconds as he had to dodge the projectiles from the remaining monster. After diving for cover he started to weave another series of hand signs. This time large, pointed rocks rose from the ground around the monster, one of which came up at an angle, splitting the leg joint and causing it to collapse. Fugaku disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"A clone! Then where is the real one?" The Kage looked around quickly, trying to pick the man out with his chakra.

"Right in front of you." Fugaku was standing a foot in front of the Kage and a kunai was now embedded in man's throat.

The Kage disappeared with a "pop" and several stones fell to the ground. Fugaku smirked. He had heard rumors that the man knew a stone clone jutsu. Apparently it was true.

Fugaku jumped into the air as the ground turned into quicksand and quickly repeated the jutsu the Kage had used earlier to raise rocks out of the earth. Landing on a rock he formed his hands into a series of seals, then quickly used a transportation jutsu to appear a quarter mile away.

The area around where Fugaku had just disappeared from exploded as rocks and dirt blew upward into the sky. A few seconds later water shot upward in a geyser. The area quickly became wet.

The Kage cursed Fugaku. "That is a major underground lake! The village is directly in its path, it'll kill everyone if it reaches it. What the hell is wrong with you!"

Fugaku laughed as he watched the Kage quickly trying to divert the quickly rising water. It was starting to flow down the slope of the plain. At the moment it was a thin stream, but the flow of water was getting stronger by the second. Soon it would be a torrential river as the lake emptied itself.

Quickly forming seals, the Kage opened a large hole in the ground in the path of the flow of water. As the water flowed back into the hole he turned around and looked at Fugaku, who was still very amused. Scowling he growled under his breath.

Fugaku noticed that the man was finally looking him in the eye. Quickly, the clan lord created a Genjutsu, capturing the Kage.

"What is wrong with you!" The Kage yelled again. The anger in his voice was barely contained. "You threaten my children! You threaten my village! Should I just attack that boy up there watching? Have you brought _your_ kid here to give him a lesson in how to overthrow a government?"

"Yes I have, as a matter of fact." Fugaku adjusted the Genjutsu and five children, bleeding and crying ran onto the rocky field. In the distance smoke could be seen in the direction of the village, as well as several explosions. Screams of terror soon followed, carried on the wind.

Jumping down from the rock he was perched on the Kage ran to his children, but was stopped when a large rock they were running next to collapsed on top of them. The man landed against the rock, trying to push it aside. He stopped to look up at the smoke and turned back to Fugaku.

"Why are you doing this? What have the Uchiha to gain from destroying my village?" Desperation filled the Stone Kage's voice and he took a few steps forward.

"Look up." Fugaku pointed up at the sky. The Kage followed his gaze, noticing first a shadow, then a large rock falling out of the sky.

"Genjutsu!" The Kage raised his hands to form the seal to break the jutsu, but before he could bring his hands together in the first seal the rock he was standing next to tipped over on top of him.

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Itachi used a transportation jutsu to appear next to his father. The jutsus used in the battle were high level, requiring tremendous amounts of chakra, yet at the end of the fight neither of the men were drained. Fugaku had used the Stone Kage's love of his village to set him up in a Genjutsu so he could kill him. It was a simple strategy, one Itachi and other Uchihas used countless times.

He doubted Sarutobi would fall for it, though. As the Hokage he knew more jutsus than anyone in the village, in fact it was said he knew all the jutsus of the village. That would mean he would have an understanding of Sharingan Genjutsu techniques and probably knew better than any non-Uchiha how to counter them.

The only thing Itachi could see that would give Fugaku an edge was the age of the Hokage. An old man in his sixties he was already starting to slow down. Fugaku wasn't even sweating after using such large quantities of chakra. All he would have to do is outlast the Hokage and he would win by default. Itachi clenched his teeth in frustration. If it was that easy, then there was no way Fugaku could loose. He wondered if Sarutobi had any secret jutsus that he could pull out at the last minute to save himself.

Itachi watched as Fugaku used a jutsu to move the rock, revealing the crushed body of the Stone Kage. He cut the man's head off, then kicked it away from the body a few feet. "No need to return with it. I don't want Sarutobi to know I was here. And If Madara wants it he can come get it himself."

"How will you get paid?" Itachi asked as they walked away from the battleground.

"Madara probably dropped the money off with Mikoto." Fugaku replied matter-of-factly.

Itachi stopped walking at looked at his father's back. "Is _that_ the _only_ thing the money is for?"

Fugaku moved so quickly that even Itachi wasn't able to see him until it was too late. Striking the boy he watched as Itachi flew about twenty feet and skidded to a halt beside a boulder. "Do not _ever_ let me catch you referring to your mother as common whore. _Is that in any way unclear, Itachi_?"

Activating his Sharingan Itachi looked up at his father with such hatred that a lesser man would have cringed in fear. "Then perhaps she should not act like one. Sleeping with that man. He will tell her nothing that you cannot figure out on your own." He stood up and yelled at his father, "Are you really stupid enough to think otherwise! He is using her and you goddamned well better realize it and put a stop to it before we all regret it!"

"Itachi! Enough! You do not understand as much as you think you do. It is Madara who is coming to Mikoto, not the other way around. I told her as long as he comes to get information from him. That's the way it is! You are a ninja, Itachi, an ANBU…" While Fugaku had been talking he had walked closer to his son until he was a foot away from him. He grabbed the boy by the front of his shirt and lifted him up so they were eye level. Itachi grabbed the hand that was holding him and stared into his father's eyes. Fugaku yelled at him, "…start acting like one! What is wrong with you lately?"

"I would _never_ allow my woman to do such a thing!" Itachi yelled back.

"Humph. Sheeta, huh? Well, you've got seven years to sort that one out." Fugaku dropped the boy onto the ground and watched as Itachi picked himself up and stared at the ground, obviously still very angry.

Itachi closed his eyes in frustration. "I have underestimated you, father." He changed the subject, and admitted his failings to Fugaku.

"Yes, son, you have. I have thirty-eight years of experience and none of that time was spent goofing off. You are my son, Itachi, and you work just as hard as I do. You have the potential to surpass me in a few years, that must be obvious to you. But right now, you cannot defeat me. When the battle comes you will play an important part, but others will be in the forefront taking the decisive action. Itachi, I want you to train, to focus all your energy on learning Madara, finding a way to defeat him. He is the real enemy of the Uchiha. Konoha is just an annoying fly compared to him." Fugaku's voice was strong and powerful, much like it had been a few days earlier in the meeting room.

"Yes, father. I _will_ defeat Madara one day." Itachi was serious about his promise. He still felt that Madara was partially responsible for Shisui's suicide and he wanted to keep Sasuke out of his clutches. He realized that if he had to choose between saving Konoha and killing Madara, he would have to choose Madara. Itachi had a feeling that Akatsuki was probably a greater threat to Konoha than Fugaku was, anyway. He hoped, though, that he could do both.

"I had another reason to bring you with me on this mission, Itachi, besides showing you my powers. I wanted you to see the Stone Kage's jutsu's and memorize them with your Sharingan. Was that accomplished?"

"Absolutely, father." Itachi showed no emotion on his face, but he was silently grateful for the lesson. All of them. This trip had definitely been one of the most instructional of his life.

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**Next week – Fall arrives and Itachi is back in Akatsuki, but why is Orochimaru looking at him funny? Is he after his lunch money?**

**This chapter wasn't really filler. There were a few things Itachi needed to realize about his father's power and… well, remember the prologue when Itachi thinks about his parents and how he used to hate them? I have given reasons for him to hate Fugaku, and now he is starting to realize that his nice, friendly, loving mother isn't everything he thinks she is. But, I have to add that bad people aren't always bad, and good people aren't always good. **

**Please review! Anonymous reviews are welcome as well xD**

**Updates on Fridays**


	49. Chapter 49 And Then There Were Nine

**Last week Itachi and Fugaku traveled to the village hidden in the Stones so Fugaku could take out the Stone Kage. Along the way Itachi realized some truths about his father and mother that help set his path for the future.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and fav's, and even to those who lurk in the shadows anonymously reading without reviewing. Sounds so mysterious. Even the word "lurk" is ominous. Kind of "ninja-ish". xD**

**This is version 2, version 1 had a few spelling, grammar, and obtuse sentences that I wanted to fix.**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto**

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**Chapter 49 – And Then There Were Nine**

Returning from Stone village Itachi and Fugaku learned that Fumitake had died two days after they had left. In the last few months he had been wracked with coughing fits that left his lungs sore and bleeding. His stamina had dropped, making it difficult for him to stomach the drugs he needed. Thin and unable to take in enough nourishment he was still loath to leave a world where his sisters would remain. However, in the end he had no choice as his body betrayed him and his heart finally stopped beating.

In the weeks that followed they lost three elders to old age and an infant who died a few days after birth. It was a hard time for everyone, and as the days dragged slowly on to weeks the Uchiha district seemed to remain in a perpetual state of mourning.

Aya was hard hit by the death of the boy she had been betrothed to and her brother. Shisui's parents had paid her the fee due for breaking the betrothal. She and her foster parents tried to refuse it, but Kisa had insisted saying was to be set aside for Aya's future wedding. That made it difficult to refuse and they finally accepted the money. Kisa and Toshiro also named Aya as their heir, meaning she would inherit their position as a member of the main branch no matter who she married. After that Kisa seemed to cheer up quite a bit, which, for some reason Aya couldn't understand, made her feel better as well.

As September drew to a close Aya found herself caught in another problem as well. Walking home in the late evening from Rumiko's house, she entered her street just as a man suddenly ran up to her and grabber her arm.

"I haven't seen you around much, Aya." It was Inabi and the teenager cringed. She hated him with all her heart for accusing Itachi of killing Shisui. While Yashiro and Tekka had finally come forward saying the investigation proved suicide, Inabi was still convinced that the Itachi had somehow been responsible for Shisui's death.

"Go away. You don't see me around because I don't like being near you." Aya pulled her arm out of his grasp and continued walking. However, Inabi wasn't that easily dismissed.

"I want to talk to you Aya. Please, just stop and listen." Inabi didn't touch her again as he moved to block her path.

"Fine. Just speak then." She decided that the best way to get rid of him was to hear him out.

"I want you to be my wife, Aya. I plan on telling your parents tomorrow." His gaze was serious as he looked down at the teenager. He was wearing his police uniform and long bangs were hanging in his face, giving him a less-than-friendly appearance.

Aya was shocked and it took her a couple minutes to find her voice. "Two problems with that, Inabi. One, I'm fourteen. Two, I don't like you."

"You will be legal age in a few months when you turn fifteen. Then we will be married. And you do not need to like me at first. That will come with time. I am the best match for you, one of the strongest ninja in the clan." Inabi's voice was firm.

"My parents would never approve, and _Lord_ Toshiro and _Lady_ Kisa would have a say in it as well." She emphasized her benefactor's titles in an attempt to intimidate Inabi. "Why are you even considering this?" Aya was angry, and she could feel tears welling up behind her eyes. She really missed Shisui and this conversation was making her miss him even more.

"They have no choice. No one else has stepped forward to claim you so they must allow this."

Aya stared at him wide-eyed then answered in a very sarcastic voice, "Uh…perhaps no one has come forward because all the males in the clan are over twenty and I'm still a kid? Did you ever think of that? It sounds like _they_ all have manners and _you_ don't."

"Like I said, legal age is fifteen. You aren't a kid." Inabi reached over to grab Aya, but fell back onto the ground instead. Looking up he saw Itachi crouched in an attack position in front of Aya. Sheeta, Nui and their mother Emi were standing off to the side, expressions of shock and anger on their faces.

"You are not to touch Aya ever again." Itachi hissed. He was dressed in his ANBU gear, and held a Katana in his right hand and a kunai gripped tightly in his teeth. His left hand rested on ground for leverage. Strong killing intent emanated from him causing Inabi to scoot back on the ground a foot before his stubborn nature kicked in and he stopped. Returning Itachi's gaze he slowly stood back up.

"What makes you think you should have a say in the matter, _murderer_." Inabi found himself knocked down again and this time Itachi had pinned his shirt with two kunai. He still held the sword in one hand and a kunai in his teeth. Inabi blinked in shock. How had he pulled two kunais that quick without letting go of the other blades first?

"I believe Lord Fugaku will be interested to find out you were propositioning an underage female." Itachi pulled the kunais out of Inabi's shirt and turned around to face Aya. "If he bothers you again, kill him. It should be easy enough, he's very weak." He turned around again and walked back down the street toward his home. He could hear Aya and the others laughing as Inabi stood up cursing.

Itachi walked into his house and sat down to remove his shoes. He had just returned from a mission and was walking into the village when he ran into Sheeta, Nui and Emi coming out of a restaurant. However, seeing Aya set upon by Inabi of all people had disturbed him. He could still remember Shisui's words.

"_I wanted to grow up, Itachi, I wanted to marry Aya and have lots of kids so mother would have grandchildren, but now I know… I have a plan. I've considered it for months and it's the only way. Promise me, though, you will take care of Aya and make sure she gets a good husband."_

Inabi did not qualify as a "good husband" by _any_ stretch of the imagination. Shisui would certainly rise from his grave to come looking for him if he allowed Aya to marry that weakling.

"Father." Itachi found the man in his meeting room, reading a scroll.

Fugaku looked up. His son rarely spoke to him anymore, which meant that when he did it was something important. The boy was still in his ANBU gear and although his face betrayed no emotion and his stance was almost lazy. Fugaku knew instantly that he had been fighting.

"Whoever it was, is he still alive?" Fugaku said in a bored voice.

"Hn." Itachi responded, and then waited a minute before speaking again, "Inabi cornered Aya and was ordering her to marry him. Or words to that effect anyway."

"That man is quickly turning into a liability. I will deal with it." Fugaku's stern voice left no doubt that Inabi would be one unhappy man in the morning.

Itachi nodded his head once in understanding, and then changed the subject. "Stone is still arguing over who the Kage will be. My mission took me up near the village and things are getting pretty bad. A small civil war has broken out; about five thousand people have died so far."

Fugaku gave a short laugh. "I guess that's five thousand less people to attack us."

Itachi nodded again and started walked away. Less than one percent had been shinobi. The rest were civilians who were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"By the way, there's a meeting tomorrow evening." Fugaku lowered his voice.

Itachi nodded once and left the room. He no longer skipped the meetings. The information they provided could be potentially useful when he moved against his father to stop the coup. For the hundredth time since he had returned with his father from Stone he wondered if he should tell Danzou about the impending takeover. However, he wanted to try to take care of the problem himself first. A coup could have disastrous results for the clan and he wanted to keep them safe. If he could take out the main participants himself then take his position as his father's heir the problem would be solved. Or so he hoped. Otherwise… the village would have to come first and he had no idea what that would entail.

A few weeks earlier he had told Danzou about Fugaku's assassination mission. Danzou had been so shocked that the clan leader had been able to take out a Kage that his normally stony face had displayed shock. He expected that when he made his report in the morning about the unrest in the Stone village Danzou would give exactly the same answer as Fugaku. In so many ways, Fugaku and Danzou were exactly alike, and Itachi was thankful that they hated each others guts. If they were to ever combine forces he was sure no one would survive.

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After such a hot summer the cold and rainy mid-October weather should have been welcomed. Unfortunately humans are fickle and hid behind heavy jackets and umbrellas or in their living rooms comfortably situated in front of fireplaces and furnaces. In fact, it was so cold that there was actually snow mixed in with the rain as Itachi made his way out of the village that morning.

A few miles outside of Konoha Itachi ducked into the woods and opened his backpack. He pulled out his cloak, blue stirrup pants, a black fishnet shirt and a blue three quarter sleeve shirt. Changing into his Akatsuki uniform he finished it off by putting on his ring. He reached up around his neck to verify his necklace, the one he had received from Sheeta two years ago, was straight.

Itachi shoved his regular clothes into a second backpack, which he hid with a Genjutsu. Finally he shouldered his backpack, shrugged on his black and red cloak and put on his hat. The white fabric fronds that fell over the sides of the Kasa hat reached down the middle of his shoulder blades and he pulled them up a little to make sure none were caught in his cloak. He then straightened the cloak so the backpack wouldn't bulge out in the back.

Sensing a presence nearby Itachi jumped up into a tree and hid his chakra. He relaxed a minute later when he saw it was Kisame, and jumped back down to the ground in front of him.

"Hiding up in the trees with the rest of the leaves, huh?" Kisame laughed at his little joke and poked the lined out leaf symbol on Itachi's forehead protector.

"You could be killed for bad jokes like that." Itachi smirked, then led the way back to the road. After the continuous tension in his parent's house and the endless ANBU missions, he actually felt he could relax a little bit around Kisame. While he wasn't a friend, he wasn't an enemy either and was probably the only person at the moment that wasn't threatening him or making unreasonable demands.

"Ha! Probably, probably." Kisame looked at Itachi. "You need your cloak lengthened. Looks like you grew a couple inches. Congratulations my boy!"

Itachi looked down at his feet. He didn't think it looked bad. "Are you a fashion victim, Kisame?"

"Gotta look good for the girls, y'know?" Kisame started walking. He did enjoy teasing his young companion. The boy was so serious all the time.

Itachi caught up to Kisame, silently wondering what kind of crazy woman would fall for a homicidal maniac dressed in an absurd black cloak that had red clouds on it of all things. No wonder Kisame had to pay women to be with him.

"What are you smiling about?" Kisame asked, suddenly curious. The boy was walking beside him, his mouth turned up in a small smile.

"Nothing."

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Cold, wet and miserable weather dogged the pair the entire five days they traveled. The cloaks and hats kept them dry and warm, for the most part, but the mud stuck to them like glue. Every evening they ended up scrubbing it off their clothes and shoes.

Their final destination was reached at the end of the fifth day. Traveling through Rain country was difficult, and they had to walk from the eastern boarder, across the country then into the northern hills. Swamps, lakes and rivers were so prevalent that Kisame swore there was more dry land at the bottom of the ocean than there was in Rain. Of course they also ran into problems with rebels and government troops who kept stopping them to ask their business. Itachi dealt with everyone they met by using Genjutsu, although Kisame claimed that shredding them all would have been a better solution. Itachi almost agreed, considering how annoying and time consuming the trip was turning out to be. By the time they reached the Northwestern corner of the country they were both ready for a long break.

The area they were told to gather was in the northwestern corner of Rain country. Grass country was a few miles to the east and Earth country was almost an equal distance to the west. The exact meeting place was an old Buddhist temple on top of a small mountain that was abandoned, probably recently since there was very little damage. Steps that were about fifteen feet wide and six feet deep had been carved out of various sized stones, making walking up the hill much easier than the muddy paths they had been following for the last few days. The forest grew right up to the edge of the staircase, bathing it in shadow.

When they reached the temple they discovered that they were the last ones to arrive. Sasori was standing on the porch of one of the buildings and Orochimaru walked out and joined him as soon as Itachi and Kisame started walking up the stairs.

"This weather is god-awful." Kisame griped as he sat down to take his shoes off, banging them on the steps to remove the caked on mud before putting them back on. "Rain country wasn't this difficult when I came through here a couple years ago."

"Try coming through Grass country next time." Sasori responded in his gravelly voice.

"Definitely leaving that way, I can tell you that much." Kisame said in a tired voice.

Itachi felt someone watching him and looked up to see Orochimaru eying him with an odd expression on his face. The man looked the same as always, pasty white skin, eyes outlined in black and purple that made then appear angular, and long black hair that fell lazily across his face.

"Good evening young Itachi. I trust you kept dry in this weather?" The man's slightly effeminate voice had a hint of something mysterious behind it.

Itachi was quiet for a couple minutes, debating whether or not he should acknowledge the comment. He hated Orochimaru and did not feel like talking to him.

"Dry enough." The boy finally answered. Itachi felt a growing disgust with the man's presence and turned to Sasori. "Are we to be quartered here for the night or will the meeting be starting immediately?"

"There is room in the building over there." Orochimaru pointed to a small building on the left that looked like it was an old sleeping hall for the monks.

"Guess again, Orochimaru." Kisame said, not too kindly. He quickly guessed that was where Orochimaru was staying.

"That one over there is empty." A tall man with light green eyes and wearing a white cloth over his mouth pointed to a different small building near the temple gate.

"Ah, Kakuzu. Haven't seen you in a while." Kisame greeted the man, albeit somewhat warily.

"Yeah, whatever. Meeting is at 8am tomorrow. There's some canned and dried food still in the kitchen if you want. It's still good." Kakuzu's iridescent green eyes looked over the small group with contempt. Itachi reacted by activating his sharingan, but was surprised to see five chakra sources emanating from the tall man. Unfazed, Kakuzu returned the boys gaze, then after a minute turned around and left without saying anything.

"Let's get inside." Itachi walked down the stairs and toward the empty building. Kisame followed.

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"Must have been the guard shack." Kisame said. There was only one room.

Itachi walked into the building a couple minutes later, having stopped at a wood pile he had seen to grab some small logs. He walked about five feet to the living area, which was on a floor raised two feet above the ground and sat down on the ledge to take his shoes off. The building itself was about two hundred square feet and the monks probably found it quite cozy. Itachi, though, found it a little ominous and suddenly wondered if the monks had left willingly or were all killed.

"That Orochimaru really creeps me out, Itachi. The way he was looking at you, like you were on menu. Shit, I'd be watching my back if I were you." Kisame grabbed the wood and threw it in the fire pit in the middle of the living area. It was a square hole cut into the wooden floor and still had the metal fire-tending tools sticking out of it. Itachi crawled over and sat cross legged next to the pit then used a small fire jutsu to light the logs.

"I can handle him." Itachi said calmly. He had sensed that the snake-man's chakra was irregular, drained, and for some reason he had seemed ill. Or perhaps suffering from exhaustion.

"He is one of the three Sannin, Itachi. I couldn't take him out. I know you're powerful, and all that, but don't get involved in something you can't finish." Kisame gave his young partner with a stern look.

Itachi was amused by Kisame's concern. If that's what it was. "He is the weakest of the Sannin and I am better at Genjutsu than he is. I have also recently gained an advantage he has never experienced. Truly, he is no match for me."

Kisame laughed. "You aren't a braggart so I guess I'll believe you. Now that the fire is going, why don't we go raid the kitchen. Must be something in there that tastes better than soldier pills. Like, sponges, dirt, wood, bugs…"

Itachi smirked. "Some canned peaches would probably be more edible."

"Speak for yourself." Kisame laughed again. Because of his unique physiology the shark-man ate a lot of meat and fish. Peaches weren't exactly his first food of choice, but he had a feeling that there wasn't much meat in an abandoned temple. Monks tended to be vegetarians.

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The next morning ten Akatsuki members met in a massive underground cave that, it turned out, was inside the hill. It was easily a couple thousand square feet and so tall that the light that covered the area they were meeting in could not reach the ceiling. The ground was smooth and sandy instead of rocky like a cave normally is.

Itachi looked around and noted that he recognized most of the members. Zetsu was easy to spot, as always, and Kisame of course. Then there was Orochimaru and Sasori, a man and woman who had introduced themselves as Pein (the Leader) and Konan (his partner and the only woman). Kakuzu was glaring at a man standing next to him who had introduced himself as Mitaka. Another man, Shun, was apparently partnered with Zetsu as the plant-man was currently giving him instructions on the best way to transport some scrolls to Wind country.

Mitaka was standing stock-still with his eyes closed and his arms folding across his chest. His bald head held many scars, one of which reached down over his left eye. When he opened his eyes a moment later, Itachi could see that the socket was empty and the eyeball had been replaced with a crystal orb. Sighing, Mitaka looked over at Kakuzu and gave him a toothy grin. There were only about three teeth, though. Whatever had happened to him, it must have been very painful. Adjusting his stance, the glint of a slashed out forehead protector from Grass country was seen wrapped around his neck.

Shun was standing a couple feet from Zetsu with his hands in his pockets. His skin was dark and leathery, taking on the appearance of someone who had tanned too much for too many years. In fact, it looked more like dead leather that a human epidermis. Itachi wondered if it was his natural skin or if he had, indeed, spent too much time in the sun. His head was covered by a turban with a Cloud village forehead protector attached to it. Wisps of pale blond, or perhaps white hair could be seen escaping from under the fabric. He was small, about five feet five inches, and definitely over thirty.

In the middle of the cave were the unconscious bodies of a teenage boy and an adult man. The teenager was about sixteen, and wrapped in a pale blue kimono trimmed with red. His black hair was loose and covered his pale face. The kimono was open, revealing the bony chest of a person who was not regularly fed. The man was huge, possibly taller than Kisame. He was covered in red armor, leaving only his closed eyes revealed. The small amount of skin that was could be seen also had a slight red tint to it. Possibly natural, but it also could have been paint. Itachi remembered that in the past some ninja would paint their bodies to intimidate their foes. Both man and boy were severely injured and had irregular chakra.

Itachi turned his eyes to Orochimaru and with his Sharingan and saw that the man was feeling better and his chakra had returned to normal. He was standing apart from everyone and, of course, looking right at Itachi with a slight smile on his pale lips.

"Attention!" Pein's powerful voice called everyone to order and they all looked at him with varying degrees of interest and disinterest. "What you see on the ground before you are the vessels for the five and six tailed demons. Jinchuurikis. In a few minutes I will be summoning a sealing statue and we will combine our chakra to seal the demon within the statue."

"Are you crazy?" Mitaka yelled. "Sealing a demon kills the person doing it; I'm not dying for you!"

"Calm down, Mitaka. The purpose of combining our jutsu is so we _don't_ die." Pein's voice was calm and he made no indication of annoyance at the sudden interruption. "The five tail jinchuuriki was captured by Orochimaru and the six-tail by Shun. There are nine demons and each of you will be assigned one to catch. After all nine are sealed away we will be able to set them loose, controlling them for the purpose of starting wars. Then, we will step in with our forces… a mercenary army made up of the strongest ninja's from every land, to end the war. Nations will start relying on us and our armies to fight for them instead of the ninja villages. They will go out of business and we will prosper."

Pein walked to the back of the cave then formed some hand signs and slammed his hand flat on the sandy ground. Immediately a massive statue began to rise from the ground. It had a head, torso and two hands. Several vertical limbs that looked like trees with their tops lopped off extended from the body. The face was quite grotesque. The eye area appeared to be covered with a blindfold, with nine eye-holes cut out of it. Four eyes were placed on the left and right and the ninth in the middle. All of the eyes were closed. The mouth was holding a stone scroll in its teeth and the scroll itself seemed to be tied around the head with a massive braided rope. A stone "beard" extended below the chin. The statue's hands were open and facing towards it, with the thumbs on the outside. Handcuffs held the hands together.

When the statue had finally finished raising from the ground the gathered shinobi couldn't help but look up at it with at least a little bit of awe. Not only was it massive, but there was a power radiating out from it that, to the gathered Akatsuki, was just plain addictive.

Itachi watched the whole summoning with his Sharingan, memorizing every detail. He could see that chakra emanated from it in small amounts. He guessed it was the vestiges of the chakra Pein used to summon it. He looked up and estimated it was at least forty feet to the wrist and the whole statue was maybe six-hundred feet tall. That probably meant that nearly the entire hill the temple was on was hollow.

"Note the finger your ring is placed on and move the corresponding finger on the statue. Now." Pein used a transportation jutsu to appear on the right thumb. Everyone else followed him, either jumping or using jutsu's. When everyone was situated Pein looked around then placed his right hand perpendicular to his face with his first and second finger pointing up and his other fingers folded into his palm. "Meditate on the statue. This will lend your chakra to the jutsu locked inside of it and allow it to draw the demon out of the jinchuuriki. We will begin with the six-tails. It will take three days for each demon, which means we will be here for six days. You will be allowed periodic breaks, one at a time. Sustenance should come from soldier pills as it builds up the chakra faster than food. Your advanced meditative state, combined with the soldier pills should be able to replace your need for sleep. There is a box of about fifteen different types of pills near the entrance and I would request that if you do not have enough that you draw from the supply instead of going without. This is too important."

Pein paused and looked sideways at the shinobi gathered on the statue's fingers. There were all listening carefully, but at the same time disbelieving. No one had ever drawn a demon out with this method and they were, understandably, hesitant. On the other hand, he could also feel a certain excitement and curiosity from them at being the first to participate in such a powerful jutsu. They were not timid men and women who backed away from power. They would step forward and embrace it, trusting in their own abilities to hold it in their hands. He knew they would follow him and his voice spoke with power, "Begin."

As everyone began meditating the fingernails under each of the shinobi glowed with the Kanji symbol of the corresponding ring. Soon the mouth started to glow. The scroll dropped as the rope detached itself from one side. It dangled over the cave floor from the remaining rope, swaying slightly until it lost its momentum.

Pein spoke loudly, "Fuuinjutsu, Genryuu Kyuu Fujun!"

The "Complete nine illusionary dragon seal" jutsu caused nine streaks of light to spit out from the mouth, each with a pointed head, two eyes and a large mouth. The beams of light were about twenty feet wide and stretched all the way to the ground where the six-tailed jinchuuriki was still laying unconscious.

Itachi suddenly wondered what was going to happen to the man when the jutsu finished in three days time. He remembered back to the Kyuubi invasion when an old man was the jinchuuriki. Itachi had heard that the man had died, but he had always assumed it was because he was old and sick and had never thought twice about it.

Suddenly Itachi felt his stomach drop. Madara had fully intended to use Sasuke as the new container for the nine-tailed demon. That meant… if he was destined to join Akatsuki then if everything else had gone according to plan… He almost panicked. He almost jumped down from where he was standing so he could run away. He felt like hiding. He wanted to hide. The realization was too much. Madara was going to place Sasuke on the floor of a cave so Itachi could pull the demon out of him. So Itachi could kill his own brother. Madara had fully intended to kill his own son. And worst of all the elder Uchiha felt no remorse about it. Only regret that he had underestimated Fugaku, causing his plan to fail.

Pein felt the chakra flicker and looked to his right at Itachi, who was three fingers away from him on the ring finger. 'So you realize now what Madara is. Good.' He had known that Itachi would catch on to the implications of the jutsu and the demons before everyone else and he was prepared for the ramifications should the boy desert or attack them. It was a worst case scenario, but as far as Pein was concerned it was a possibility. Madara called him paranoid, and in fact Konan did too, sometimes. However, Pein considered himself cautious. Being a God was one thing, but no one worships a dead God.

Itachi quickly brought himself back under control, then noticed that Pein was watching him. 'I have to do this. Then I'll decide what to do afterward.' He was glad he was facing away from the boy's body, especially six days later when the last vestiges of the demon were being drawn out and he started screaming in agony.

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Six days later the ten shinobi gathered on the floor of the cave and watched as the statue disappeared back into the summon realm. The two eyes that had opened after the demon was sealed had closed again when the scroll was placed back in the mouth.

Pein then recited the list of which demons each member would capture. Itachi was surprised to find out he was assigned the Kyuubi. 'Naruto.' He said to himself. He remembered holding the baby hours after he had been torn from his mother's womb. He had given the baby his first bottle. His thoughts back then had been of the power of the Kyuubi and how great Madara was if he could control it. How naïve. And ironic that now he was now expected to kill the boy. Madara had to be stopped before that happened. Just as he felt responsible for Sasuke after assisting his pregnant mother, he felt the same responsibility for Naruto after helping care for him in the cave after the Kyuubi attack. While he lived no one was going to hurt either one of the boys.

Everyone started to walk out of the cave entrance, which was now open after having been sealed close for several days. Itachi was tired and felt drained. He activated his Sharingan and saw that everyone else was as well. Staying awake for six days in a meditative state with only soldier pills for sustenance and limited bathroom breaks was difficult for anyone.

"Everyone, you may stay here as long as you like to rest up. Zetsu, dispose of the bodies." Pein called out as they started filtering out of the cave. "Itachi. I would like to speak with you."

Itachi held his emotions in check and stopped walking. After everyone had left the entrance slid shut and Itachi turned around to face Pein. The Rinnegan user was eyeing the boy carefully from a distance. After a couple minutes he moved closer, stopping about five feet away. The silence continued. Itachi was not going to be the first one to speak. As far as he was concerned, he had nothing to say.

Finally, Pein's strong voice broke the silence. "Itachi, you are a very powerful ninja, while not quite S-rank like the others, you should attain that level in the very near future, maybe even a few months. You are young, and perhaps still think in terms of mercy, kindness, and happy endings." Pein looked down at the boy who returned his gaze with emotionless red eyes. Yet he saw something else in the boy. He looked deeper and saw intense sorrow and suffering. He saw fear. He saw love and hate. 'No one can understand another person's pain.' He said to himself.

"I will not justify myself to you, nor will you to me. However, we have a job to do here and emotion has no place in it."

Itachi nodded his head, acknowledging that he had heard him.

Pein continued to hold Itachi's gaze. Itachi frowned and finally spoke. "Yes, Leader. I understand."

"You may leave." The entrance was opened once again and Itachi walked slowly outside.

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"Got caught by teacher, huh?" Kisame teased. He had waited for Itachi outside the entrance.

"Shut-up." Itachi said grumpily.

Kisame smirked at the boy's insult then turned serious. "Everyone felt your chakra flicker when the jutsu started. That's bad business, kid."

Itachi's eyes flickered to the man walking beside him. Kisame hadn't called him "kid" since they first met in Water country.

"I already heard this lecture." Itachi admitted reluctantly. "I wasn't…"

Kisame sighed. "Just watch yourself. These people are the type to take advantage of weakness, real or perceived. Don't give them an opening."

Itachi nodded. He was feeling bad already about aiding in the murder of two innocent people whose only crime was housing a demon, but being lectured by two powerful S-Class ninja's didn't improve his mood. And for some reason, hearing the criticism from Kisame hurt the worst, although he wasn't sure why. It wasn't like they were friends. He couldn't talk to the man like he could have with Shisui or Sheeta. However, he did feel like he could relax around him, and the shark-mans constant chatter was somehow… comforting… or maybe hypnotic?

"I apologize. It won't happen again." Itachi said quietly.

Kisame gave the boy a surprised look. He hadn't expected an apology. He was just warning the kid. He had seen a lot of ripped up young shinobi's who underestimated their older, more experience opponents and was trying to impart some "wisdom" to an eleven-year-old. However, he could tell that the boy had been raised with strict discipline and suspected he apologized more from an ingrained need to show "good manners" than because he actually felt sorry. Itachi didn't really show much emotion and almost seemed confused when others did.

"Its okay, Itachi. Just watch your back for the next few days." Kisame gave him a big smile. "So what do you think? Peaches, apricots or pears tonight?"

Itachi gave a short laugh. "I have a feeling the next town we get to isn't going to have any pork, chicken, beef or fish left by the time you leave."

"Damn straight!" Kisame laughed.

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The next evening Itachi was standing on the stairs outside the temple looking at the sky. He wasn't thinking about anything in particular, just hanging out away from the others. It was around midnight and some of the older Akatsuki's had been gambling away their earnings in a game of Mahjong for the last four hours. Itachi had watched them for a while, slightly curious, but realized quickly that Kakuzu was utilizing a strategy that would guarantee that the others would be relieved of all their funds before morning. He worked slowly so that no one noticed he was stealing all of their money. Itachi watched Kakuzu for a while, impressed with the man's patience and gambling skill, but eventually grew bored and left.

Itachi had considered telling Kisame what was going on, but then again Kisame had only grabbed a small portion of his money and was playing more for the socializing than to win or lose. Once again Itachi considered how strange adults were.

The crescent moon was rising over the gate as Itachi turned and faced the temple. He was a short ways from the top of the mountain and the forest was quiet. It had finally stopped raining the previous day while everyone lay in their bedrolls, asleep. Waking up to see the afternoon sun shining down on the earth was a very good feeling and everyone seemed to be in a good mood, albeit there were varying degrees of "good moods" but the atmosphere was generally lighter. Pein, Konan and Zetsu were nowhere to be found, not that anyone looked. Everyone else decided to stay for one more night to rest then leave the next morning.

"It is a beautiful night, is it not, Itachi?" Orochimaru's voice cut through the still evening as he walked up the stairs. Apparently he had been on the lower half of the mountain and was now returning.

Itachi slowly turned around and saw Orochimaru standing a few steps below him. He didn't answer, but gazed down on the man with little interest.

"It is time, Itachi. I require a new body, and yours will do nicely." Orochimaru gave a short laugh.

"And what makes you think you are going to take it?" Itachi had heard rumors, years ago, about a hidden jutsu that would allow one to extend ones lifespan by moving between bodies. It was also said that the reason Orochimaru wanted to kidnap an Uchiha was to have a premium body of the most advanced Kekkei Genkai for that jutsu. Itachi remembered back to when he was a small child and Orochimaru had appeared before him and Shisui when they were returning from training. Madara and Kentaro had been with them and protected them. They had told the boys that day that if Orochimaru ever caught them along there would be nothing they could do to escape him. They were small children, just learning jutsu, and he was an advanced Shinobi.

Itachi dropped his hands to his side and stared straight ahead at the man who was now two steps below him. Even though the deep stairs kept the distance between them at around ten feet, Itachi felt it was still too close. Not because he was afraid of him, or it interfered with his jutsus, but because he hated the man and couldn't stand to be around him.

Activating his Sharingan he caught Orochimaru's gaze. The man's yellow eyes did not have the regular round pupil, but a black slit that stretched from the top of his eye to the bottom. It looked just like a snake's eye. Itachi applied chakra to his gaze and willed Orochimaru to stand still.

Orochimaru, who was in the process of stepping onto the next stair, stopped moving. He waited a minute and beads of sweat appeared on his face and he tensed up. "I cannot believe I was paralyzed by your Genjutsu."

Itachi remained motionless and kept his face passive, but inside he was surprised by Orochimaru when he suddenly smiled and changed from anxious to excited, "Such power in your eyes. Excellent. Truly something to be envied."

However, Orochimaru's excitement quickly changed back anxiety when Itachi formed his hands into several signs and spoke, "Magen, Kasegui no Jutsu." And cast a second Genjutsu that caused five steel spikes to pierce his body, one on each leg, one on each side of his chest and one through his back. The man realized he was going to have to start his body transfer jutsu now if he was going to have any chance of capturing Itachi. With great difficulty, Orochimaru raised his hands to form the Genjutsu dispelling jutsu.

Blood splattered across the step as Orochimaru's right hand was severed from his wrist. The now-useless limb landed on the ground with a sickening thud. The Akatsuki ring still encircling the pinky.

"Argh!" Orochimaru grabbed his arm and stared at the boy in shock. He hadn't seen him pull the kunai or cut the hand off. Itachi had moved too fast.

Holding the kunai in front of him Itachi spoke in a calm voice, "Orochimaru, before these eyes of mine, all your jutsus are completely useless."

Orochimaru sent chakra through his arm to stop the bleeding and then staggered back when Itachi released the Genjutsu. He gulped as he looked back up at the boy, realizing that he had waited too long. There was no way now to get his body. This boy was too powerful and the other one was dead. Orochimaru gave a low growl of frustration. There was one more Uchiha, but he was too young and did not know any of the clan jutsu's yet, nor had he activated his Sharingan.

Bending down, Orochimaru picked up his severed hand and turned around. "Tell Madara I quit. I will have nothing more to do with this organization."

Itachi stood quietly and watched as Orochimaru staggered down the stairs. He wondered if the man would make it to the bottom before he passed out. Turning around he walked back to the temple.

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"Ah! Itachi, my boy, come to play some Mahjong? Kakuzu here has been kind enough to relieve us of our money and now it's your turn!" Mitaka was fairly genial, thanks to the now-empty bottle of sake sitting in front of him. Shun laughed and patted an empty spot on the floor in invitation.

"No." Itachi said quietly.

"What's the kunai for? There's blood on it. Who's missing?" Kisame gave a toothy grin as he looked around and took a mental count of those present.

"Orochimaru." Sasori said, obviously annoyed. "I take it I will be requiring a new partner?"

"Yes." Itachi answered again with a one-word answer.

"Good riddance then. He was a pain and a half. Is he dead?" Sasori gave a short gravelly laugh was actually quite creepy.

"No. Just minus a hand."

"Hey, the kid actually spoke more than one word." Mitaka toasted Itachi with a new bottle that Kisame had just handed him.

"Humph. Well, I'm done for the evening. I better report to Leader what happened." Sasori turned his puppet body around and left the porch where the little "party" was taking place.

"Why didn't you kill him?" Kakuzu asked in an annoyed voice.

"It would have caused problems. He is a Sannin and has powerful friends, some criminal, some loyal to Konoha. Since I have to stay in Konoha right now killing him would draw attention to myself and could potentially blow my cover. There aren't many people who can kill Orochimaru and when you look at the list and pull out the names of those who would have had conflict with him in the past; my name is near the top." Itachi sighed looked off in the direction Sasori had departed.

"Oh, you're not in trouble, if that's what you're thinking." Kakuzu said, returning to the game.

Itachi wondered why Kakuzu was being so talkative; almost helpful. "I'm not worried about it. Just wishing I could have killed him. Maybe next time."

"And I bet you a million ryou that Orochimaru is dumb enough to try for a second time, too." Kisame laughed.

"That's not something I would willingly bet against, Kisame. I know why Orochimaru is after Itachi and you're right, eventually, he will try again." Kakuzu turned some tiles over and retrieved the money sitting in the center of the board.

Itachi chuckled. "Then maybe I'll get my wish someday." He turned around and made his way back to the old guardhouse he and Kisame were staying in. It was almost 1am and he was, finally, sleepy.

As Itachi laid down on his bedroll next to the fire he couldn't help the smile that crossed his face. As long as Orochimaru kept his ring Akatsuki would be limited to nine members. "One down, eight more to go."

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**Next week:**

**Itachi and Kisame make there way back to Fire country, via Grass country, when Itachi finds himself in a village he never expected to visit.**

**Reference – 345 Scanlation **

**This is the last time Akatsuki will be gathered in one spot without using their rings in the hologram jutsu (or whatever it's called). I gathered them together because I think the first demon sealing was basically a chance to see how well the process worked. In order to have the maximum amount of chakra available and make sure nothing went wrong (in terms of the hologram jutsu having adverse effects or some other unforeseen occurrence) it would be better (in my opinion) to have everyone present. One reason I think this is because after the Sasuke/Naruto fight at the Valley of the End, Akatsuki is gathered together (using holograms) and one of them (Deidara?) says that this is the first time they have all gotten together since Orochimaru left. We also know that two demons were sealed while Orochimaru was in Akatsuki because when they are getting ready to seal Gaara, Kisame asks if it is going to take longer than three days because Orochimaru isn't with them anymore. After the first two demons were sealed several years pass before the next is sealed (Gaara). That tells me that something went wrong. Either with the statue, the sealing process, or perhaps Madara or Pein's plans. I would love to learn the reason, but we will probably never find out.**


	50. Chapter 50 Detour

**In the previous chapter Itachi cut off Orochimaru's hand when he tried to take over his body, and the first two demons were sealed by Akatsuki.**

**Thanks for all the review and fav's and hello to all the lurkers xD**

**Q&A time: What Itachi said in chpt 353 was that the 9-tails had to be sealed last. Gaara was the 1-tail and he was the third sealed so this must mean that order doesn't matter as long as Naruto is last. **

**The Orochimaru vs. Itachi fight (if you can call it that xD) is chpt 345.**

**Itachi doesn't know what to think about Kisame yet. The man seems friendly and he can relax around him, but he doesn't know why. Basically, by this time Itachi has built up so many walls that friendly people scare and confuse him. Plus Kisame is an Akatsuki and Itachi has sworn to kill Madara. This dilemma will come up again in a couple chapters.**

**I corrected some spelling and grammar errors in the previous chapter. Thanks for pointing that out. I use spell checker, but it can't tell you if a word is missing or if you use the wrong word. And it doesn't help if I space out and ignore it, either xD**

**Disclaimer – Kishimoto still owns Naruto**

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**Chapter 50 - Detour**

"Are you going to eat the rest of that?" True to his word, Kisame was gorging himself on practically every meat dish in a small restaurant in Grass country. Itachi had ordered ramen and the noodles and vegetables had been so filling that he could only eat a couple pieces of the chicken strips.

Itachi pushed the bowl over to his partner and smirked. "Go ahead."

"Don't mind if I do." Kisame gave a toothy smile and grabbed the remaining chicken strips with his chopsticks.

"Your son's never going to get bigger if he doesn't eat his meat." The elderly waitress laughed at the two Akatsuki.

"He should have come with a larger stomach then. I daresay if you put a plate of dango in front of him he could probably find room for that, though." Kisame laughed as the old woman gave him a pleasant smile and started clearing away the empty plates. Itachi sighed, then smiled. Candy did sound good right now. He had seen a store down the street when they walked into the small town and it was probably closing soon. He looked his watch and saw it was almost 8pm.

"I'm going to the store." Itachi stood up and put his share of the bill on the table.

"I'll see you in the morning then." Kisame turned his attention to a large steak the waitress had just delivered.

Itachi walked down the street, wondering how the larger man could possibly eat so much. He had been unable to even finish his bowl of ramen. Although the portion was much larger than what Ichiraku in Konoha served.

Entering the store, a bell above the door rang and a boy who was probably sixteen or seventeen came out of the back room and greeted him. "Good evening. We are closing in ten minutes; do you need help finding anything?"

Itachi found the candy rack immediately. "I'm fine." He answered. Looking through the rows he saw some candies he had never tried before. He grabbed about five bags and two candy bars then walked up to the cash register. Laying then down he noticed a map that had been pasted to the counter and moved the bags.

"What's this area here?" He pointed a spot about three miles to the east that had a circle with an "X" drawn through it.

"Oh, stay away from there, it's dangerous. A clan of powerful ninja's lived there until about ten years or so ago. The Grass ninja attacked and killed all of them, well, _almost_ all of them. Their chief was plotting to kill the Grass ninja leader. Apparently the whole clan was going to attack the ninja village and take over."

Itachi was a little suspicious. The teenager's story sounded vaguely familiar. "What happened to the ones they didn't kill?"

"Several escaped and fled to other countries. They all have death sentences if they come here. The clan chief's brothers and daughter are number one on the list, of course."

"Have they gotten them yet?" Itachi frowned, surprised at the discover. He had, inadvertently, stumbled upon Yuri's home. Not only that, but he had confirmed the reason the village was attacked.

"I don't know. We aren't in contact with the ninja village. I just know what people have told me. It might not even be true, actually. You know how rumors are." He pulled out a plastic bag as he spoke.

"I don't need a bag; I'll put them in my pocket." Itachi handed over some coins and bills and then stuffed the candy in an inside pocket. "Why shouldn't I visit the clan's old village?"

"Everyone who goes there dies. It's cursed." The boy looked at Itachi. "You're obviously a ninja, and that's Fire country, right?" He pointed at Itachi's scratched out headband and Itachi nodded. "Well, maybe a ninja could figure a way inside, but really, why bother? It's not like they left buried treasure behind."

"Good point." Itachi turned around and left the store.

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The hotel the pair was staying at was quite large considering the size of the town, but it was also almost full. It was one of only two hotels in the area for those heading either into or out of the rough terrain. Considering it's location to Rain and Stone and the large number of hills and small mountains nearby there were a lot of people who passed through the town.

Despite the large size of the hotel, Itachi's room was small, with just enough room for a futon. There was no other furniture, and there was one bathroom with a toilet and sink on each floor for all the guests. If a guest wanted a bath he or she would have to utilize the bathhouse at the edge of town. It was a very no-frills hotel. However, Itachi wasn't going to complain. The only other hotel in town was an old fashioned communal style building. One story, one room. The guests paid a small fee, were given a ratty bedroll and told to find a spot on the floor to sleep. Not many of those places still existed, and Itachi was surprised as they walked by it, to see a "no vacancy" sign hanging outside.

Itachi hung his cloak on a hook on the door and, after removing a bag of caramels from its pocket, sat down on the futon. He was glad he was able to get his own room. Kisame was not subtle or quiet and Itachi tended to wake up at the slightest noise.

Opening the bag he stuck a candy in his mouth and chewed slowly. He couldn't believe he had run into Yuri's old village. It was an amazing coincidence, especially considering its remoteness. He had actually thought the village was closer to the eastern border of Grass, though.

"Should I go take a look tomorrow?" Itachi wondered out loud. He remembered Yuri telling him that her uncle and his father had traveled to the village to retrieve something. He had never found out any more than that. He would have to tell Yuri about the village, though. He wondered how she would take it. She was upset because her uncle was keeping secrets from her. She suspected her father wasn't innocent, but her memories of him were all happy ones.

It will be the same for Sasuke, he realized. The boy knew nothing of the clan's planned attack on Konoha. He was in the same position as Yuri. "I have to go. I have to see what happened."

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"Why are we here again?" Kisame kicked at a cheap aluminum lock and the wooden gate it was meant to keep closed swung open and then fell to the ground as the hinges gave way. They entered the deserted village, looking around warily for traps or other dangers.

"I saw it on a map at the store last night and wanted to see it." Itachi looked at the village. There were no intact buildings. Some were nothing more than piles of decaying or burned out lumber, while others were half standing. The grassy plain the village was built on was reclaiming the land with sturdy grasses and small shrubs. A few large trees continued to grow, with red and gold leaves clinging to half-empty branches. Mixed with the grey skies and constant cold winds it was a dreary sight. The slightly bitter smell of prairie grass filled the air as they walked down what was once the main road.

Approaching the middle of the village they came upon a large number of burned out buildings. One of which was obviously once a mansion. It would have been where Yuri's family, the clan leaders, lived. Itachi remembered that Yuri's uncle had burned as many documents as he could before he left. Looking over the devastation he must have also tried to burn down the village as well.

"What happened here?"

"They planned to overthrow the Grass ninja village and were found out. The ninja's attacked and killed most of them." Itachi bent down and picked up a toy he found in the dirt, a small horse. He saw something else and squatted down to get a better look. Brushing away some of the fine dirt he pulled out a small bone. It was part of a child's finger. He closed his hand around it and lowered his head, not wanting to think about what had probably happened that night. He put the small bone back and returned the toy to where he had found it. For some reason, when the child started running he or she had been holding a toy. Itachi wondered why, then remembered what Shisui had said. They had given up their childhoods to become ninja. Of course he wouldn't understand.

Kisame shook his head as he watched his young partner. The boy was a bit of a paradox at times. He had taken Orochimaru out a few days earlier – one of the most powerful ninjas in the world - yet here he was, apparently sentimental over some dead kid's toy horse.

"Several independent ninja clans have attacked Mist in the last few years. All ended up like this. A couple were major powers, but are now extinct because of their arrogance. The Mist Kage does not take well to such threats and dealt with them ruthlessly. Rumor has it my old teammate Zabuza is raising a rebel army as we speak to try the same thing." Kisame looked around at the fallen buildings and burned out foundations as he spoke. Grass and small shrubs were growing in most areas, but some places, possibly those touched by some kind of jutsu, were still dirt.

Itachi thought over what Kisame had just told him. He had thought his father's plan was unusual. Yet here he was standing in the middle of a village wiped out for doing the same thing, and he was listening to a man telling him about other clans who had also attempted coups.

"Why would they do it?" Itachi asked without thinking.

"Why?" Kisame frowned in confusion, then shook his head. "They want war. They want peace. They want some sort of social change. They want revenge. There are a million reasons. And the reasons of the man who plans it are often different from those of the people who follow him. Yet they all move in the same direction. But it all boils down to one thing, 'survival of the fittest'. They believe they are the most 'fit' and fall when they try to prove it." Kisame paused. "Let's get out of here."

"Yeah, let's leave." Itachi stood up and walked back to the broken gate. "By the way, this place was supposed to be booby-trapped, according to the shop clerk."

Itachi had a feeling that there was something nearby, he stood still, Sharingan activated, and looked closely at everything around him. The place was deserted. The only sound was the wind blowing through the tall grass and shrubs and a few late autumn birds. There were no bugs, but Itachi noticed that spiders were spinning webs preparing to mate and lay eggs for the upcoming winter.

Kisame suddenly scowled and crashed Samehada down onto the ground. "Something is here. Samehada is restless."

"Yes." Itachi replied quietly. "These were grass ninjas, skilled in earth jutsus. Some could use jutsus that would utilize the plants and roots."

"Zetsu? Is that you playing with us?" Kisame scowled.

"Does he do that?" Itachi asked, annoyed.

"Yes. And I don't trust him, and I know absolutely nothing about him. Not even what village he is from." Kisame was starting to get mad. He didn't like the feeling of being watched. No ninja did. It was their nature to hide behind the scenes and strike with secrecy. Standing out in the open in the middle of a burned-out village in plain site of an unknown enemy was the worst possible scenario.

"What are you, and why are you here." A Grass village Kunoichi rose up from the grass where she had been laying, masking her chakra.

"I could ask you the same thing." Kisame answered.

"This is Grass village territory. You are the invaders. Mist and Fire. Why are you here and why are you working together? And what is with those outfits?" She pulled a kunai and crouched down, prepared to attack.

"We were checking out a deserted village on our way to an Otaku convention, and these are cosplay outfits for an anime." Itachi deadpanned. Kisame and the woman looked at the boy like he had lost his mind.

"That is the _dumbest_ made-up excuse I have ever heard." The woman shook her head and two men climbed up out of the grass and stood behind her.

"The convention is next month on the other side of the country, and there is no anime with those outfits." One of the men answered sarcastically.

Itachi smirked. It was unlikely that the woman was alone, as ninja traveled in teams of three or four. The Grass ninja were hiding their chakra not just by suppressing it, but by covering themselves with the tiny amount of chakra contained in the grass.

"Why are you here?" Itachi's Sharingan caught the trio's eyes and they were instantly caught in his Genjutsu. He pushed his will into them, making them want to answer his questions.

"We were ordered to report back to our leader any information about people returning to the clan's village." The woman answered.

"There are secret documents we need to retrieve and we haven't been able to find them. A clan member might come back and we were ordered to capture them and make them tell us where the documents are." One of the men answered.

Itachi snorted. It figured. He cast a sleep Genjutsu on Grass ninja's and they collapsed to the ground unconscious.

"That was anti-climactic." Kisame turned around and started walked back to the road. "Grass-nins sure are weak."

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An hour later Kisame stopped walking and crashed his sword down onto the ground once again. He started laughing.

"Huh?" Itachi asked, puzzled by the sudden interruption in their quiet journey.

"What's the most number of ninja's you've ever fought at one time?"

Itachi was suddenly on the alert and activated his sharingan. "How many are there?" He counted them quickly before Kisame answered.

"Thirty-seven." Kisame ran into the field and swung Samehada in a wide arc. Suddenly the quiet, peaceful field was alive with Grass ninjas. Itachi quickly jumped up and activated his Sharingan.

"Trespassers must be apprehended and taken back to the village hidden in the Grass for interrogation." A man wearing a woven grass cloak stepped forward to speak with to the pair. "Will you come without protest, or do we have to subdue you first?"

Kisame laughed again. He was in a good mood. "Why don't you try it?" He rushed at them, swinging his sword. It knocked a couple of the ninja's out of the way and they fell to the ground, too weak to get up again.

"Watch out for the sword!" One of the fallen ninja's yelled weakly. "It pulled out my chakra!"

"Kidnap his kid then!" A different ninja yelled. Several men and women ran toward Itachi. The boy sighed in exasperation. Why did people keep thinking he was Kisame's kid?

Crouching down, Itachi attacked the first two ninjas with Taijutsu, easily knocking them down. He then jumped up and as the next group approached him he caught them in a Genjutsu. A total of fifteen ninja's suddenly stopped running and collapsed to the ground, believing themselves to be caught in quicksand.

"Quite impressive." Kisame walked over, a big grin on his face. All of the ninja had been subdued. "Grass village isn't exactly powerful, but we've still got a day left in this country. If these guys get word back to their village that we are here they will be after us again. What the hell is in that village back there that would cause this much trouble? Obviously they are the ones killing people who enter it. And I bet a lot of the dead were probably curious locals who wanted to check out the legend."

"Harsh. It sounds like a wild goose chase. Probably some petty officials pet project." Itachi stared at the quicksand trapped ninja's, considering what to do with them.

"I'll kill them all. Then they can't tell anyone we were here." Kisame raised his sword again and started to walk out into the field.

"Wait, Kisame. There is no need for that. I can cast a Genjutsu on them and make them think we were never here." Itachi looked at his partner and Kisame shrugged his shoulders and returned to the road.

"Make it quick. It's getting close to lunch time and we're still a ways from the next village." Kisame sighed, disappointed. Fighting in this country was always lame. He found himself wishing he had gone north into Earth country.

Itachi walked into the field and was able to use his Genjutsu to capture groups of the ninjas at one time. He altered their memories so that they believed they had fought two tall blond Stone ninjas, and then put them to sleep for two days. When they finally awoke, he and Kisame should be in Fire country.

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A week later Itachi was back in Konoha and sitting in a tree outside of the village with Yuri. He had explained everything to her. Including finding the toy horse and the child's finger bone. She had listened quietly, showing no emotion. Finally she spoke.

"I knew something had happened, and I knew it must have been our fault in some way. After all why would they attack us like that? We weren't even part of the hidden village. I never suspected anything back then. Because of father everyone is dead." Her blank face betrayed nothing of her feelings as she looked straight ahead into the forest.

"What do you think the Grass village is looking for?" Itachi asked quietly.

"I really don't know. Uncle and Lord Fugaku traveled there a while back to retrieve something. Perhaps that was it? Hard to say. Sometimes the best place to hide something is directly in front of the person looking for it." She sighed. "Thanks for telling me all this. I might go back someday, just to see."

"Don't. It's not worth it. It's all burned down and in ruins." Itachi couldn't understand why she would want to see her old home. "You were very young when you left anyway, do you remember much?"

"I remember a lot, actually. I have a good memory. But..." Her voice faded away and she looked down at the ground, twenty feet below the branch the two shinobi were sitting on. "If you don't mind, Itachi, I think I want to be alone for a while."

Itachi stood up. "Okay. See you tomorrow." He jumped away without waiting for a response. Again he thought of Sasuke, and wondered how the coup would affect him. It was difficult to imagine.

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Itachi only saw victory for his father. There was no way the village would be able to defend itself. Sasuke would grow up under a village ruled over by Fugaku. For some reason, though, Itachi could not imagine himself in the post-coup village.

Itachi stopped on a branch and asked "Where am I?"

"Right here, my boy!" Itachi blinked a couple times and then stared wide-eyed at the man sitting on the branch next to him. He could have sworn that there was no one there a second ago. He hadn't even sensed anyone nearby.

"Master Jiraiya!" Itachi said, awe leaking into his voice. He had never met the man in person, but had heard a lot about him. He was the most powerful of the three Sanin and his exploits were legendary.

"Young Itachi. I hear great things about you from Sarutobi. Although it sounds like you are lost." He was over six feet tall, clothed in a simple Yukata and pants with wooden sandals and his long, knee length white hair was gathered in the back with a tie. He had a large scroll hanging from his back.

"Perhaps metaphorically, but otherwise I am well." Itachi answered calmly.

"Hmm. I've just been in the village spying on my godson. He's quite the little prankster." Jiraiya's cheerful voice didn't fool Itachi and he was suddenly on guard. He suspected the meeting wasn't chance, but the question was why. "They are talking about letting him move out of the orphanage in the hospital into his own apartment in the next couple years."

"He needs supervision." Itachi spoke plainly, remembering that Naruto was his assigned target.

"So you know my godson? He's a lot like his mother." Jiraiya laughed, but Itachi caught his eye with a serious look.

"Don't ask me to explain, master Jiraiya. I won't. But make sure Naruto is guarded well." He knew he was walking on thin ice with the man. If Jiraiya wanted he would pull out every secret Itachi was hiding. However, he felt he needed to warn him. He had told Fugaku everything, of course, and his father had said that he would ensure Naruto never fell into Akatsuki's hands, but passing on a warning to the Sanin during a "chance" meeting was an added precaution he couldn't pass up.

Jiraiya stood up then bent down and grabbed Itachi's right hand. The boy resisted the urge to pull away and stood still. Jiraiya then moved his other hand over Itachi's and caressed his fourth finger. The one he wore his Akatsuki ring on. Itachi kept his calm, but inside his mind was shouting. It was obvious. Jiraiya had somehow found out that he was in Akatsuki. The man continued to move his fingers along Itachi's for a couple minutes, deep in thought.

"Your warning has caught me off guard, Itachi. The conversation I was going to have with you is now superfluous." Itachi stared up at the man unflinchingly. Jiraiya's face was now serious. "You are a once in a generation genius, the brightest light of your clan and Konoha. I do not lie when I say Sarutobi speaks very highly of you. Orochimaru does to, actually, in between the cursing that is. Frankly I'm surprised he's still alive, but that's none of my business, I guess."

Itachi still didn't say anything. The Sanin even knew about his cutting off Orochimaru's hand. Jiraiya stopped rubbing his finger and grasped his hand, kneeling down at eye level with Itachi. Itachi finally spoke, "Why don't you stay here with him?"

"I'm not the 'parent' type. I can't raise a kid. Besides, frankly, I find it hard to live here now. I love the village, but there are so many bad memories… And, I can't do my research if I'm stuck in one spot!" He gave a loud, hearty laugh.

Itachi looked at him curiously, then looked down at his hand. Jiraiya wouldn't let go. "Itachi, I know things aren't easy for you, but stick with it. I'll look you up occasionally and we'll talk some more. Perhaps, it will ease your heart a little and someday you'll find yourself."

Jiraiya stood up and let go of Itachi's hand. The boy bowed and, bidding the man farewell, jumped back into the forest in the direction of the village. Jiraiya watched as the boy disappeared into the foliage. The conversation was not at all what he had expected. He figured there would be a confrontation, possibly even a fight. But the boy had warned him without prompting. Something was definitely going on.

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Itachi reached the village twenty minutes later and walked through the front gates. He couldn't believe Jiraiya had tracked him down so easily. It was beyond comprehension. How had he done it? What would have happened if he hadn't spoken first to warn him about Naruto's safety? It was obvious Jiraiya had expected a confrontation. Itachi wrapped his left hand around his right hand as he thought about it. He cold still feel Jiraiya's strong grip. He must have had spies at the temple. Probably his frog summons were spying on the area.

'Now I'm spying on Akatsuki for Jiraiya, too.' Itachi said to himself. 'I wonder who's next?' His bitter thoughts followed him all the way back to the house and, ignoring his mother's request that he join the family for dinner, shut himself in his room to think.

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Fugaku read through Itachi's Akatsuki mission report for the tenth time. The revelation that Madara was collecting the demons and storing them away to use later was the worst possible news. Starting wars with the purpose of bankrupting the five great villages was not something Fugaku wanted to see happen. He even considered going to Sarutobi with this information, but it would have exposed Itachi's position.

Setting the scroll down he rubbed his fatigued eyes. Naruto was closely guarded by ANBU and Sarutobi used a special jutsu that utilized a crystal ball to keep an eye on the boy. He would have to trust that Naruto would continue to be protected as he grew up. When he got older, he would have to be trained to use the demon chakra within him. However, Fugaku wondered if that would be enough to protect him. Power was important, but it was never the only way to win a fight. And from what Fugaku had seen, the Fourth's son wasn't very bright. In fact, he was rated last in all his subjects at the academy and Sasuke couldn't stand to be around him. Too bad, really, since Fugaku had every intention of placing Sasuke and Naruto together in the same Genin team after the Coup. It was the only way to ensure Naruto's safety.

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"Okay! I'm ready!" Sheeta yelled from the tree tops. Itachi had been helping her with her training. She had been working on a cloaking genjutsu that rendered one invisible. When properly executed the only way a ninja could be detected is if they move, so Sheeta would activate the jutsu while Itachi looked for her. So far he had been able to find her every time.

Itachi looked around the area without his Sharingan. The cold, frost-laden ground and trees were slippery and he had to use chakra to maintain his hold on the tree branch. His breath could be seen every time he exhaled. Smiling he yelled into the forest, "I think you did it! I can't see you at all!"

Activating his Sharingan he looked again, then laughed. She was four feet in front of him. "Perfect, Sheeta!"

Sheeta returned his laugh as she materialized, giving the impression of a mirror folding in on itself. "Hooray! Now I can apply for a junior position at the police station. Mother and Father really want me join after Aya was accepted last month."

Snow started to drift lazily to the ground in small flakes. Sheeta reached out and watched as they melted on her hand. Both children jumped to the ground, using their chakra to keep from slipping.

"Rumiko is finally marrying her boyfriend, did you hear?" Sheeta changed the subject.

"Yeah, mother told me last night. In the spring. Is she going to continue being your sensei?" Itachi looked at Sheeta, she was smiling. He hadn't seen her happy in a long time. All the deaths last summer had worn her out.

"Yes. She said she likes being with Aya and me. Although she wants to start a family right away, so who knows?" Sheeta opened her backpack and brought out a plastic container of cookies. "Nui is a fully qualified medic now. She gets to go on dangerous clan missions. Oh, and she has a boyfriend. He's kind of annoying though. Mother says he's too old for her because she's seventeen and he's twenty-five but father says that there aren't any other clansmen her own age and he likes him. They play Go together at the temple a lot."

"Why is he annoying?" Itachi asked quietly.

"He keeps calling me 'kid'. I'm not a kid, I'm eleven years old. He does it to tease me." Sheeta frowned.

"Is Inabi still after Aya?"

"No one has seen Inabi for several weeks. He's been labeled a missing ninja and Toshiro and a couple other top policemen are hunting him down. The rumor is that they have orders to kill him." Sheeta's eyes were big, surprised that such an order would be give.

"Good riddance then." Itachi commented, bitterly.

"I guess." Sheeta sighed. "Aya is happy he won't be bugging her anymore, but she thinks they are going overboard if the death thing is true."

"Fugaku is extreme in everything he does."

"I know…" Sheeta looked shyly at Itachi then down at her lap. "I like you and some of the others… but I wish we had never come here. It was a mistake. Even if it meant Fumitake died in that hospital and we ended up on the streets again, it was better than…"

'So Sheeta has figured it out as well.' Itachi thought to himself.

"I'm afraid to leave, but I'm even scareder to stay…" She was whispering now. "If it doesn't work, we'll all be killed. When we were in Grass country we took ninja jobs to escort people and we heard of several clans that were wiped out when they attacked the ninja village there. Itachi, I don't want to die that way!"

Itachi looked at Sheeta and saw she was wiping tears from her eyes. He didn't know what to do or say. "How do you want to die?" He instantly regretted his words, wondering why he had even spoken them. Sheeta looked up at him, a shocked expression on her face. It melted away quickly into a look of regret.

"Old. And we have lots of kids and grandkids and you're the best clan leader ever. And our son is getting ready to take over your position and he's the greatest ever too." She started crying, "But it's never going to happen!"

Itachi panicked. His training didn't tell him what to do with a crying girl. His father always hit his mother, but he didn't think that was the right thing to do. Although, that one time when they had come back from his first clan mission Mikoto had cried and Fugaku had given her a hug instead. His parents had gotten along pretty well for a while after that.

Hesitantly he lifted his arm up and scooted closer, then wrapped it around her shoulder. He then wrapped his other arm around her. She instantly grabbed his shirt and turned so that she was resting her head on his shoulder. She stopped crying after a couple minutes and Itachi decided that he had done the right thing.

As Itachi and Sheeta sat under the tree watching the snow come down around them, the boy couldn't help but wonder, for the fiftieth time, how many others disagreed with his father's plan. Unfortunately, none of them were going to go against it. It was up to Itachi to find a way to save the village and his clan from his father. Just as Shisui had said, there was no one else.

"Don't worry, Sheeta," Itachi said quietly after they had sat in each others arms for about fifteen minutes listening to the quiet sound of snow falling, "I'll figure something out."

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**Next week – Aya is in a lot of trouble and Itachi has a confrontation with another man's past that leads to a frightening revelation about the future.**

**Please review! Anonymous reviews are accepted. **


	51. Chapter 51 The Red World

**Last week Itachi stumbled upon Yuri's old village, met Jiraiya for the first time, and snuggled with his girlfriend in the snow.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and favs **

**Remember, I got Itachi's birthday wrong. In the story it's March, but in the real Manga it's June.**

**Disclaimer – Nope, I still don't own Naruto. **

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**Chapter 51 The Red World**

"Uncle, why did you wish to see me?" Itachi, dressed in his ANBU gear, jumped from a slush covered tree branch to the muddy ground. He looked up at the enigmatic man who, instead of using a name, insisted every call him "Uncle".

"You had a discussion with my niece. It displeased me." Dressed completely in black and wearing a Kasa, Uncle stood alert and ready to attack at a moments notice. Itachi knew this was the man's usual stance and didn't take it as a threat. However, he also didn't let down his guard either. Uncle had, after all, sent him a note a few hours earlier _ordering_ him to meet him outside of Konoha.

"What exactly about that discussion was disconcerting to you? The truth?" Itachi challenged him.

"Yes. I did not want her to know right away. At least not until afterward." Uncle looked around the small clearing. Melting snow was dripping off the trees and it occasionally sounded like footsteps when it hit the ground. He had a paranoid personality and expected to be attacked at any moment.

Itachi looked him in the eye. He knew what "afterward" meant. This man was part of his father's coup. And by default, so was Yuri. It didn't surprise him, after all Uncle had been spending time with Fugaku. It made sense that Fugaku would want to find out why a similar action had failed in order to avoid making the same mistakes.

'How many others are involved?' Itachi thought to himself. He figured some of the Hyuuga were. Several side-branch members also spent time with Fugaku. He claimed he was running a neighborhood-watch to try to deter crime in the Hyuuga district. Itachi would have to keep a closer watch on what was going on. If he was going to stop his father, he might also have to stop others well.

'What if I have to kill Uncle?' Itachi continued to look at the man in font of him. Yuri would be inconsolable if her beloved uncle died. He was a cruel teacher, but he was also a kind uncle who cared for her more than anything else in the world.

"The entire country of Grass knows about the incident. How long do you think it would be before she found out on her own? She is ANBU. A trained assassin. As such her duties take her into the surrounding countries."

"Dammit, Itachi! That's not the issue!" He yelled at the boy, swinging his fist in the air in frustration.

"Then what is the issue? What are you hiding?"

"I want to rebuild my clan. Pull everyone together. Yuri is the only way to do that. Sarutobi, however, refuses to allow any others of our clan in the village. I told Yuri they do not come here because they are afraid of me."

"Then why did you come here? Why didn't you take Yuri and go somewhere else that you all could be together?" Itachi was becoming frustrated with the argument.

"My clan is very powerful. You have seen Yuri's abilities. She would be considered average. Despite my tutelage that is all she ever attained. It is still impressive, however. I wished to see my clan together with other powerful clans. The Uchiha and Hyuuga and Senju were at the top of my list. However, Senju does not want us here. They fear what we may become. They believe we are a threat." Uncle's voice was passionate.

"You say 'my clan'." Itachi paused. He was suspicious of the man in front of him, as he had been for years. But now it was for a different reason, and it angered him. "You aren't Yuri's uncle at all. You are her father. You survived. Ran off into the night while your people were being slaughtered around you." Itachi took a couple steps forward and yelled loudly, "You god-damned coward! How could you! Your job as clan leader was to support them! Defend them! Fall at their side instead of them! You sacrifice so they prosper! My father is a jerk, but he is a hundred times better than you. And here you are trying to piggyback off his plans. Do you really think he doesn't know what you're doing?"

Uncle was taken aback by Itachi's uncharacteristic outburst and stepped back several paces. Staring silently at the boy, he clenched and un-clenched his fists at his side. Itachi continued to watch him, barely controlling his anger. He wanted to kill the man for his cowardice and deception. It was obvious Yuri did not know the man was her father. She was young and traumatized by the massacre and had easily fallen for the lies the man had spun.

"What are you going to do about it?" Uncle finally challenged.

Itachi huffed loudly and turned his back to Uncle in frustration. "Absolutely nothing. Live your own life. Do what you want. But remember that Yuri is not an idiot and…" Itachi turned around and looked in the eye, Sharingan activated, "perfectly capable of taking care of things on her own."

Uncle's voice dropped and his eyes took on a shadow of sorrow, "I'm doing this for her, Itachi. My little girl. My only reason for living. I know what I did. I was a failure. But Yuri will be my redemption. She will rebuild my clan, make it what it should have been. She will be the leader they should have had. Fugaku also guessed what happened. He… said the same things to me you did."

"And he no doubt agreed to let your clan come to village afterward." Itachi was calm again, but Uncle didn't answer. He wondered how many people were left in the clan. It must be a substantial number if Fugaku was working this closely with a man he detested. Tactically speaking, it was a good move though. If, as Itachi suspected, thousands of Konoha residents were slaughtered in the coup, bringing in a hundred or more members of a powerful clan could take up some of the slack. In fact, Uchiha had contact with several clans in other countries. It was possible that arrangements were made with them as well.

Suddenly everything got ten times more complicated. He could now see a scenario where thousands of ninjas from Uchiha friendly clans could march on Konoha the day of the coup. And here he was sitting back thinking it was all Uchiha with a few other Konoha insiders helping out. And what was Madara going to do? Would he order Akatsuki to help or sit back and watch?

"I hope you get your wish then, Uncle." Itachi turned his back on the man and walked away.

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The sound of melting snow dripping from the trees echoed through the forest as Fugaku walked away from Konoha. The main road was muddy and the few ox-carts that passed him were bouncing noisily through the many potholes. A couple miles down the road the clan lord turned east and walked onto a narrow trail that snaked through the tall trees. A small stream flowed noisily beside it, pushing at its banks with all the extra water from the snow. Walking under the trees Fugaku cursed his choice of attire as drops of cold water dripped onto his neck and down his back, making him shudder.

"Should have worn a kasa." He said thoughtfully.

Inabi's badly decomposed body had been found nearby a week earlier. An autopsy had determined that he had fallen off a nearby cliff, but his mother and friends refused to believe it had been suicide. Fugaku also refused to believe it. Inabi was ambitious with high hopes for the future. It was obviously murder.

Looking up Fugaku gazed closely at the cliff as it came into view. It was only about thirty feet above the trail, but it was a sheer drop. A ninja, with the help of chakra, could negotiate it easily. So how had Inabi fallen?

Someone had also been returning to the scene of the crime regularly. Footprints could be seen all over the area and there was evidence that whoever it was stayed for long periods of time. Perhaps hours. Yet there was no other evidence. No hair or clothing samples, no scent, no fingerprints. It was a very professional job. Of course, in a village composed of ninjas, such was often the case.

Walking through the very wet forest Fugaku finally rounded a bend in the trail and stopped short. Activating his Sharingan he was shocked to see that someone was just ahead of him. But exactly who it was, was an even bigger shock.

"Aya? What are you doing out here?" Fugaku walked into a small clearing littered with boulders and large rocks. She was sitting on one of the boulders at the bottom of the cliff staring at the ground. Bundled up in a thick black jacket and black snow boots she had her hands in her pockets and her long black hair was covering part of her face.

The girl looked up quickly, then looked back down at the ground. "Just… wanted to be alone. That's all."

Fugaku sighed and closed his eyes. He did not want to see her here. He never imagined that he would see her here. He de-activated his Sharingan and lowered his voice, not wanting to scare her. "What happened, Aya?" He had to give her the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps it had been self-defense; Inabi was a hot-head after all.

Aya didn't speak, but Fugaku could see she was very nervous.

Aya stood up and started walking away. Fugaku stepped in front of her, blocking the trail. "Tell me what happened. If you do so willingly I won't use any force."

Turning around so that her back faced the clan leader she wiped her eyes on her sleeve. She waited a couple minutes, then started talking. "I told him to meet me here so we could discuss getting married. Then I pushed him off the cliff. He was still alive when he hit bottom so I smashed in his skull with another rock."

Fugaku looked down at the teenager, astounded. Aya was actually one of the last people he would expect to commit cold-blooded murder. And despite her tears, he could see she felt no remorse. In fact, she wasn't really crying. He moved so that he was standing in front of her and could see that her tears were forced for show.

"And you think you will get away with it." Fugaku stated matter-of-factly.

"Yes." Aya sighed calmly.

Fugaku ground his teeth together in frustration. "This causes a lot of problems, Aya." He grabbed her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye. "We cannot loose anymore children, therefore you are not expendable and cannot be punished directly for this crime. Does anyone else know?"

"No, my Lord." Aya tried to step back but Fugaku's grip tightened and he grabbed her shoulder. She was starting to get nervous. The area was isolated and he was much stronger than her. "What… what are you going to do?"

"Humph." He looked her over. She was almost fifteen, with long black hair, big black eyes, clear skin the beginnings of what would one day become a good figure. "I think you will make a very good assassin. I will inform Mikoto to begin your training in the morning. There are several people I need dead before the coup. A pretty young girl such as you should have no problem luring them to their doom."

Aya gulped and looked at the man in front of her in fear. She tried to pull away from him but Fugaku tightened his grip and bent down so that he was only inches from her face. "Would you rather break Kisa and Toshiro's heart? Or your parents? Or you sisters? Murder is a serious affair, Aya, and apparently you have a talent for it. You are also a Kunoichi, which means you also have other… 'talents'. When combined, Kunoichi become some of the best assassins in the ninja world."

"I don't want to…" Aya whispered. She had a sudden vision of herself kissing an ugly middle-aged man and real tears started to flow from her eyes.

Fugaku moved forward a little more so that his mouth was next to her ear and whispered back, "I don't care." He then straightened up and spoke his normal voice. "Inabi was a jerk, but did not deserve to die. You killed a clansman, your cousin. If circumstances were different you would be executed. Remember that." He released her shoulder and raised his hand, slapping her hard across the face. Aya fell to the ground and buried her face in the wet, cold grass sobbing openly.

Fugaku walked away a few feet and stopped. "Be at my house at 9am in the morning, Mikoto will be ready for you. Don't let anyone else know."

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Reaching the main road Fugaku stopped and sat down on a stump and put his head in his hands. He had only wanted to scare the girl. In reality Inabi was one of the people he wanted dead before coup. The man was too ambitious and Fugaku had a feeling that he was going to have to watch his back if he left him alive. However, Aya killing him was unexpected. Her reaction was also unexpected. The girl had killed in cold-blood, then returned to the scene of the crime. She hadn't even tried to lie about it, so sure that she would be let off without any punishment.

And she was right. He couldn't punish her. The clan needed her too much. However, once she had children she would no longer be needed.

"Aya, your very life depends on how useful you are from this moment forward. Fail me, and I will not hesitate to kill you." He sat there for a few more minutes in silence.

Eventually his old friend entered his thoughts; the man who had been his guardian as a child. They had argued on a few occasions because Fugaku had thought Itachi was taking after his grandfather and was a sociopath. Kentaro never believed him. "Kentaro, perhaps you were right. Itachi isn't the sociopath. Aya is."

Fugaku looked up at the sky, wondering if the old man was watching. It seemed as if the more time that passed the more he missed Kentaro to the point where he now felt real sorrow, guilt and regret when he thought of him. And lately he thought of him frequently.

The elder had felt cornered by Konoha's treatment of the Uchiha and had worked together with Madara in the beginning stages of a plot that was continuing with the Akatsuki. Fugaku now understood how Kentaro had felt as he set into motion his own plot. He wanted to save the Uchiha clan, to protect them. He too felt cornered and driven to extreme measures.

Rubbing his eyes Fugaku reached into his pocket for some eye drops. Tilting his head up he dripped the soothing liquid into his eyes and closed them, trapping the solution for a few seconds. Opening them he wiped the excess liquid from his face and stood up. He was going to have to talk to Dr. Yakushi. For some reason his eyes had been scratchy and the chakra flow was a little off, stronger actually.

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"You want me to do WHAT?" Mikoto's angered voice echoed throughout the house, waking Itachi up from his nap. Looking at his clock he saw that it was 1:10 in the afternoon. Sighing in frustration he rolled over onto his back and closed his eyes. He had gotten back a couple hours ago from his meeting with Uncle and was trying to relax. Leave it to his parents to start an argument and disturb him. Another voice that Itachi recognized as Fugaku's could be heard coming down the hall, but the words were not discernable.

Curiosity piqued, Itachi masked his chakra and silently exited his bedroom. Making his way down the hall he stopped outside his parent's room. The door was open about a foot, but he could see neither Fugaku nor Mikoto.

"Aya is too young! Missions of that type are not done until a girl or boy is eighteen. She's only fourteen now!" Mikoto yelled again.

"Things won't be going that far. All she has to do is lure them to an isolated spot and kill them. If things do start getting that far instruct her to run away. Just teach her enough to lure them." Fugaku's voice sounded sincere and Mikoto stopped yelling.

"You promise? If you are lying, I do have ways to stop you, Fugaku, and I will use them. I won't let you hurt a little girl that way. She isn't one of your prostitutes." Mikoto's voice was very threatening and Itachi shuddered unconsciously.

"And she never will be. But for the record, I don't use prostitutes that young and never will. It's just sick." He paused for a moment, then continued. "She killed a clansman, Mikoto. In cold blood, without remorse. He was not a threat to her."

Itachi blinked in shock. Aya had killed someone?

Mikoto gasped. "Who? Who did she kill, Fugaku?" Her words were desperate and disbelieving.

"Inabi."

"Oh my God! No! His mother's been desperate to find the murderer. He was all she had after her husband died. Fugaku, what are you going to do?"

"I can't charge her, the clan needs her to grow up and bear children. So I'm funneling her talents into an 'assassin'. No one else must know about this." He paused and suddenly Itachi felt something grab his collar and yank him into his parent's room. "That goes for you, too, Itachi. Can you keep your mouth shut?"

Itachi looked up at his father with a look of disgust on his face. "Yes."

Fugaku released his son's collar and looked at him. Itachi kept his gaze even, then turned around and started walking away.

Mikoto called after him, "It has to be this way, Itachi. Please don't hate Aya."

Itachi stopped walking at the doorway. "She's not the one I hate." He said under his breath, then left the house. Fugaku and Mikoto had both heard him though, and, unable to look each other in the eye went their separate ways.

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"So how much have you been able to figure out on your own?" Madara had met up with Itachi at the abandoned hospital where Dr. Motoi had held the young boy several years earlier. The early January gray winter sky and cold winds made being outside uncomfortable but, nevertheless, the pair stood resolutely ignoring the weather.

Itachi had put off calling Madara, not wanting anymore training from him, but recent events had told him that he needed it after all. And he was suspicious of a few things. "I have been able to summon the Tsukiyomi but not do anything in it. That's all I've tried."

"Well, I guess that is where we will begin. I'll summon Tsukiyomi and show you what it is. Perhaps your first experience was too traumatizing and you didn't remember it properly." Madara removed his mask and smirked when Itachi stared at him. He remembered that the boy had never seen his face before. He met Itachi's gaze and the gray world changed into a red plane with a red sky and black clouds. A pale-red full moon hung in the sky.

Itachi looked around, Mangekyou Sharingan activated. Madara stood about ten feet in front of him. His deep voice spoke calmly as he walked closer to the boy.

"Time passes in this world according to your wishes. You are the ruler here, the God that creates, the God that destroys. Thirty-six hours here could be a second in the real world. But remember, your eyes will suffer each time you use it so use it sparingly." A field full of crosses appeared across the empty plane and Itachi found himself tied to one. Looking around he saw that there were a hundred more of him tied to the rest of the crosses. A sword appeared in Madara's hand. Itachi smiled and Madara dispelled the summoned world.

Back in the real world Itachi looked up at Madara. "I see how it is done now. Should I try it once?"

"No, wait until you have a real victim. I wasn't kidding about your eyes, Itachi. Mangekyou Sharingan will eventually leave you blind. Tsukiyomi is generated with the left eye. Amaterasu is generated with the right eye." Madara paused for a moment and black flames appeared on a stone bench a few feet to his left.

Itachi walked closer and looked at the black flames, being careful not to touch them. They did not decrease in intensity and there was no apparent accelerant nearby to cause them to burn in the first place. "How do you put them out?" He finally asked.

"You reverse the Amaterasu or a sealing scroll can be used." The flames disappeared as Madara spoke. "There are many other techniques, and you have the ability to create new ones. I'll leave the rest to you."

Itachi smirked. "Afraid I'll learn too much?"

Madara froze and glared at the young boy. "It is no secret to me that you now wish me dead. However, you are still useful to me so I will not kill you. Yet. Do not push your luck, Itachi. _No one_ is indispensable. Including you." The boy was no longer the happy little student who looked forward to his lessons. He was quickly turning into a bitter teenager who bad-mouthed his elders. And Madara was not amused.

The wind blew around the corner of building with a loud "whoosh" as the man and boy stared at each other. Several minutes passed without either moving a muscle. Finally Itachi broke the silence.

"Does Fugaku have Mangekyou Sharingan?" The question was so abrupt and unexpected that Madara clenched both fists in frustration.

"What makes you say that?" He snapped at the boy.

Itachi almost felt like laughing when he heard the sudden emotion in Madara's voice. The man who thought he knew everything had missed something so vital it was akin to a mountain dropping on top of him and then wondering why he was flat. "His chakra feels different, kind of like yours. And he seems more sure of himself."

"Or perhaps you are just paying more attention to him now?" Madara attempted to brush him off.

"When was the last time you saw him, or are you too busy sharing Mikoto's bed to notice anyone else?" Itachi knew he was pushing his luck, but he held his ground and kept his gaze locked on the tall man in front of him.

"I guess I've been too occupied with Mikoto to notice." Madara said airily, then smiled when he saw the look of hatred that crossed Itachi's face. "Two can play at that game, Itachi, but it is childish and ends here. I enjoy Mikoto's company and I am compelled to check up on my son's progress. However, it sounds like I should perhaps visit Fugaku in the near future. I would not have thought it possible for him to attain the higher level jutsu, given his personal rule of suppressing emotion, but anything is possible I suppose."

Itachi's face returned to its usual stony expression as he listened to Madara. If Fugaku did have that jutsu, then defeating him would be that much harder. Resisting the urge to sigh he tore his gaze away from the man in front of him and looked up at the leaden sky. Rain drops started to leak from the heavy clouds and Itachi closed his eyes, feeling them pool across his face. The cold liquid felt good on his hot skin.

"Itachi?" Madara's voice held a note of concern.

Itachi didn't answer him.

"Are you crying?" The older man walked over and looked closer at the boy.

Looking at Madara in shock he wiped the rain from his face and found that he had been crying. "No, it's just rain. I should be getting back now. I've got three heads in that bag over there that Danzou is waiting for."

Madara watched as Itachi ran down the path, then jumped up into the trees disappearing quickly from view. There was no more denying it. Itachi had changed. He was not the same boy he was six years ago nor was he the boy Madara had hoped he would become. Right now, for the moment, he was following orders and toeing the line, but how long was that going to last? Was he his father's son after all, or Madara's protégé, or perhaps his own person? Madara had a feeling that the answer would surface soon, and he would not like it.

"Well, there is still Sasuke." Madara sighed. "He has as much if not more potential as Itachi. His eyes are strong. In nine years he will be fifteen and I shall recover custody of him. Then we shall see what will happen."

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"What do you want?" Fugaku asked grumpily.

Madara had just materialized in Fugaku's office at the police station and sat down in a wooden chair placed in front of the desk. It was a few weeks after his training session with Itachi and he finally found time to check out a certain issue in Konoha. Leaning back, he stretched out his legs and crossed his ankles. He looked closely at the clan leader. Fugaku looked up from his paperwork and met his gaze.

"What?" He asked again.

"I would not have thought it possible."

"If you're here to state the bloody obvious, then leave. I'm in the middle of employee evaluations and I have to write up the monthly report for the Hokage." Fugaku went back to his paperwork. He had finally realized the reason his eyes were bothering him and was still in shock over it. On the other hand, he was also pleased at the new power he would be able to unveil to the Hokage when he fought him.

"Humph." Madara had a sudden, hilarious vision of himself giving "employee" evaluations to the Akatsuki and had to stifle a laugh. Shaking his head to dispel the image he returned his attention to Fugaku. "Konoha is yours then. What are you waiting for?"

"That is none of your business." Fugaku answered, meeting the man's gaze once again.

"Grouchy today, aren't we. Well, haste is never a part of good planning. However, neither is waiting too long."

"This from a man who has been waiting eighty years to take over Konoha." Fugaku spat at him. "How many Uchiha are in Mist?"

"Ah! Now it's my turn to say 'none of your business.'" Madara gave a short chuckle. "I know you have sent spies to find out, we've even captured a few as you are aware. They won't be returning any time soon."

"I am not sending anymore." Fugaku replied.

"I saw Mikoto's young apprentice. Pretty girl." Madara changed the subject.

"Keep your hands off of her. She's not yours." Fugaku now devoted his full attention to the man in front of him and Madara smirked under his mask.

"Whose is she then? Not Shisui's certainly. I wonder if he knew what kind of girl she really is?"

Fugaku slammed his hand on his desk. "She is not going to be used that way. She is being trained as an assassin. If Shisui had not died, she would not have killed Inabi. That is more than obvious." Fugaku didn't understand why he felt the need to defend the girl to this man. Other than a nagging guilt at having been partially responsible for her betrothed's death.

"You didn't answer me, Fugaku, who does she belong to?" Madara was having fun picking a fight, but there was a method to his madness. And it showed itself as Fugaku stood up from his desk, activating his Sharingan. A second later the three tomoes ran together and combined into a black circle with a black cross in the middle. Madara smiled when he saw Fugaku wince momentarily in pain.

"Ah! That is what I wanted to see." He gave a short laugh. Fugaku growled and sat down. His eyes returned to their usual black.

Madara looked across the desk at Fugaku. "If you wait too long, my dear clan lord, you will be too blind to rule."

Fugaku suddenly laughed. "So says you. However, my _dear ex-clan lord_, why did Inuza not go blind when you did? Something you wish to elaborate on?"

It was now Madara's turn to get mad. He stood up silently and used a jutsu to disappear.

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The long cold winter continued into March and Itachi woke up on his twelfth birthday to four inches of snow, and it was still falling. Entering the kitchen a half hour later he saw that Mikoto and Aya were having a discussion over a map of Konoha.

"Oh, Itachi, you _are_ home." Mikoto said, surprised.

"Good morning Itachi." Aya said, smiling.

"Good morning mother and Aya. I returned early this morning." Itachi sat down and poured himself some tea.

"I have something for you, Itachi." Mikoto stood up and left the room, returning a few minutes later with a small box. She sat back down at the table and handed it to him.

Itachi looked at his mother, wondering what she was doing. "Did you forget your birthday again?" She asked, referring to an incident a few years back when he had been training so hard for the Chuunin exams he had forgotten his birthday.

"No… I just didn't expect anything I guess." He opened the box and pulled out a leather bracelet that had a pouch attached to it.

"It's for soldier pills or whatever. I make it myself." Mikoto smiled as Itachi tried it on. "I made it so you can continue to wear it as you get bigger."

"Thank-you mother. It's very useful. Should I loose my pack I would still have soldier pills." He gave her a small smile. The lightweight brown leather was smooth against his skin and didn't interfere with movement.

"Sheeta was hoping you would get back soon." Aya winked at Itachi. He gave her a puzzled look. "It's your birthday, maybe she'll give you a kiss like two years ago?"

Itachi thought about that, then stood up. "Then I guess I'd better go collect it."

Mikoto and Aya stared at each other in shock as the boy walked out of the kitchen.

"I was kidding, Lady Mikoto." Aya said in a surprised voice.

"Today my son becomes a man." Mikoto pretended to wipe away a tear.

"Not with my little sister!" Aya yelled.

Mikoto broke out in laughter. "I'm kidding, Aya. Itachi isn't like that." Aya had to laugh at herself for falling for Mikoto's joke.

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Itachi and Sheeta walked hand-in-hand on the snowy road outside of Konoha. He was wondering who Aya was planning on killing next and she was thinking about Rumiko, who was three months pregnant and getting married in a couple weeks.

"Itachi?" Sheeta finally broke the silence.

He turned to look at her, frowning. "How many children do you want?" She asked curiously.

Itachi blinked twice. "Sheeta, that's kind of in the future. I don't think we need to decide now."

"I know. Just wondering." She was quiet for a while. "I want three. Or maybe four. It has to be one more than Aya though."

Itachi groaned. Those two were so competitive. Sheeta laughed at him and he smiled.

"You said that on purpose didn't you?" He asked.

"It got you to smile, so it worked." Sheeta was obviously very tricky.

He led her off the road and they walked across a snowy field near a stream. The area was actually one of the practice fields, but no one was out today.

"You owe me one more present, Sheeta." Itachi stood in front of her, smiling. He noticed that he was now taller than the girl, albeit by only an inch.

"Oh? What?" She knitted her brows in concentration, trying to remember if she had promised him something. A lot had happened in the past year but she usually had a good memory.

He gulped once, suddenly nervous, then took a couple steps forward. Placing his hands on her shoulders he closed the distance with his head, placing his lips over hers. As he closed his eyes he noticed that she was closing hers as well. Soon she was returning the kiss and her arms wrapped around his back.

They parted after a minute, but didn't break their embrace. Itachi thought about how comforting it was to hold something alive in his arms. Sheeta was warm and breathing lightly against his cheek. Her chest moved slightly in and out and he wrapped his arms around her so he could feel more of her body against his. It was probably a strange thing to think, he decided, and it wasn't anything like what the hero thought in the romance novel he had perused when he visited Kakashi a few days earlier, but then he wasn't a normal kid. 'Teenager' he corrected himself. Twelve was no longer a kid.

Once again Sheeta broke the silence. "We're being watched." She whispered.

Itachi looked behind him to see a tall man with long white hair jump to the ground.

"Happy birthday my boy!" The man called out as he walked up to the pair.

Itachi sighed. "Lord Jiraiya, it is… nice… to see you." He gave the older man a look that translated to "You couldn't wait ten more minutes before showing up."

"And this must be your fiancée. Sheeta, I believe?" Jiraiya winked at Itachi then bent down to get a closer look at Sheeta.

Sheeta backed up, suddenly uncharacteristically shy. "Lord Jiraiya?" She quickly bowed. "I'm very pleased to meet you. You're like, a legend or something."

Jiraiya laughed, "And you two are making out in the worst place possible. There are about three other people around here watching."

Sheeta looked around, alarmed.

"No there isn't." Itachi said seriously. "He's trying to tease us Sheeta. Don't worry about it. There's just the one ANBU trailing you and she doesn't count."

"Oh." Sheeta sighed in relief. "My mother would probably slap me into next week if she caught us kissing." Her face turned red.

Itachi laughed. "Then we won't let her catch us. We are ninja after all."

"That's my boy!" Jiraiya gave a hearty laugh and started to walk away.

"What were you doing out here? Besides spying on us?" Itachi called out after him.

Jiraiya stopped walking and turned around. "Remembering better times. Tsunade, Orochimaru and I became a Genin team on this field. So long ago, now, it seems sometimes like it never happened. Sarutobi was our sensei." He looked closely at Itachi and Sheeta. Neither could translate the meaning of the look and after a minute he turned around and left.

Itachi couldn't take his eyes off of Jiraiya, even after he was no longer in sight. What was his real reason for being there? Was he playing the responsible adult and interrupting two kids who were kissing, or was he hoping to find Itachi alone so he could talk to him?

Well, right now it didn't matter. It was his birthday after all, and he wanted more of his "present" from Sheeta.

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**The bit about Fugaku and the Mangekyou Sharingan is a setup for the sequel and not really relevant to the current story so he won't be using it. However, I needed to put it in now. You may think I'm off my rocker, but frankly it wouldn't surprise me if Fugaku did have MS. Why plan a coup if you didn't have a chance of winning? And using MS against Sarutobi would be a huge bonus. I'm not saying I believe he did, just that it wouldn't surprise me (and when Itachi told Sasuke about MS, Fugaku was already dead). Anyway, don't hang me xD**

**Next week Akatsuki needs a new member, and guess who is chosen? That's right, Sakura! No, wait, wrong story… Deidara! Yeah, Deidara.**

**Please review! **


	52. Chapter 52 Art is a Bang

**Last week Itachi received a short lesson on how to use his Mangekyou Sharingan, and celebrated his twelfth birthday with his girlfriend. We also got a peek into Aya's dark soul.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and favs, and to all my favorite lurkers**

**This chapter marks one year of writing this fic. You know, even though I have it all outlined, I didn't think it would be this long. xD **

**The first part is directly related to an event in a previous chapter of this story.**

**The second part is from Manga Chapter 359.**

**Also check out the bonus one-shot I posted, it's a deleted scene. Read the story to see why I deleted it. It's called "Broken Heaters Warm Hearts" and stars Itachi (11) and Sasuke (6).**

**Disclaimer - Kishimoto owns Naruto. I own… nothing xD**

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**Chapter 52 – Art is a Bang!**

"Itachi… you look like shit." Kisame bent over and looked his partner in the eye. Or rather, the small portion of the eye that was not covered by a heavy, swollen lid. It was morning and they were meeting up in the lobby of the hotel they had been staying at for the last three days while on a stake-out mission for the Akatsuki. The mission was over and it was time to leave.

"I'm fine. Just tired. I couldn't sleep last night." Itachi scratched his arm through his cloak. Then scratched it again. "I took a soldier pill, so I should be fine soon." He yawned once and shook his head, trying to clear it.

Itachi had woken up an hour earlier because he had been scratching his arms in his sleep, and it was starting to hurt. Moving slowly into the bathroom, eyes barely open, he was shocked at what greeted him when he looked into the mirror. His chest and arms were covered in small bumps and in places they were raw and bleeding due to his nocturnal scratching. His eyes were also swollen and he could barely keep them open.

Taking a quick shower he almost fell over when he emerged from the stall as a wave of dizziness passed over him. However he had felt fine after that, except for his eyes and the itching. And he was sure that the soldier pill would keep him going until they reached Waterfall. As to what caused the strange rash, he could only conjecture and as he rubbed some anti-itch cream from his small medical kit over his chest he decided it would probably be gone soon.

Kisame frowned, looking doubtfully at his young partner. "Well, let's get going then. We have to meet up with Sasori in Earth country in a few days."

Leaving the hotel they walked out into a sunny spring morning. Tulips and daffodils lined both sides of the one-road village making it look very friendly. Early risers were out walking or stocking the few vending stalls at the edge of town. A couple old women were sweeping the wooden sidewalks, one on each side of the road, and they smiled at the man and boy as they walked passed.

Entering the woods Itachi and Kisame took to the trees, jumping from branch to branch. However, an hour later when they stopped for a break Kisame noticed that Itachi was still very sleepy. Reaching down he put his hand on the boy's cheek. Itachi immediately jerked away.

"Itachi, you have a fever." Kisame spoke in a stern voice.

"I'm fine. Now let's go." Itachi answered, annoyed that Kisame had not only noticed his condition, but had the gall to comment on it. Whatever happened to that "missing nins mind their own business" speech he had given him on their first mission?

Itachi had been feeling worse as the morning wore on, with alternating waves of nausea and dizziness. He wanted nothing more than to hurry up and get to their destination. After scratching his arms and chest he took off into the forest. Kisame followed, shaking his head in frustration. If there was one thing he had learned it was that Itachi had a stubborn streak.

Six hours later they were nearing the border with Waterfall country when Itachi, who was still in front of Kisame, suddenly missed the branch he was about to jump onto and plummeted to the ground.

Cursing, Kisame jumped down from his branch and caught the boy in his arms, landing deftly on the ground in a crouch. "Dammit, Itachi! What the hell is wrong with you!" He looked down and saw that Itachi was unconscious. "The hell?" He put his mouth next to Itachi's ear and yelled his name, but the boy didn't respond. He growled under his breath, angry at having been put in this situation.

Looking around he mentally placed their location on a map he had memorized. He knew the area from a mission a few years back and remembered that a small cave was about forty-five minutes away, coincidentally in the direction they were already headed. Jumping back up into the trees he high-tailed it for the cave.

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Large, dry and completely made of stone the cave was about a thousand square feet. It did not look natural and Kisame suspected that Stone nins had made it as a refuge during the last ninja war.

Kisame laid the still-unconscious Itachi down and tried once again to rouse the boy, but was unsuccessful. Noting that he had a high fever and his face was covered in sweat, Kisame removed the boys cloak, shirt and sandals and set them aside. Turning his gaze for a closer look at the boy he gasped. Itachi was covered in hundreds of small bumps along his arms, chest, and a few were now on his face. There hadn't been any there when he had caught him earlier. Kisame grasped Itachi's chin and forced his mouth open. There were also bumps on the inside of his cheeks and the back of this throat.

"Chicken Pox?" Kisame almost felt like laughing. It was ridiculous. The great Itachi Uchiha, pride of the Akatsuki and Konoha, was down for the count because of Chicken Pox. However, in rare cases it could cause severe complications, and Itachi was definitely getting worse.

Kisame sat back and considered his options. If Itachi died or was disabled by this illness he would be assigned a new partner. Said partner would probably interfere in his "extracurricular" affairs. Kisame shook his head. He couldn't let that happen. Itachi minded his own business and had a fairly mild personality. Well, maybe not "mild". The boy was very effective at killing and torture, but…

"Just admit it Kisame," He spoke quietly to himself, "you've gotten attached to the kid. He's… not annoying. Kind of like having a little brother."

Kisame wiped Itachi's face off with cool water while he considered his next move. Konoha was a day and a half away so he couldn't drop him off there. The nearest village didn't have a healer. Actually, none of the villages in Waterfall had healers. The country was destitute and the people who called themselves "healers" were either poorly trained or frauds.

"I'll contact Leader and see if he knows of any resources nearby." Moving to the mouth of the cave so he could monitor the area easier Kisame prepared to meditate. He concentrated on the Leader's chakra, calling to him.

"_What do you want?"_ Leader's voice projected through the ring, directly into Kisame's mind. The words were spoken in his usual powerful monotone.

"I need a location check for a healer. Southern border of waterfall." Kisame answered.

"_There are none. What is wrong?" _

"Itachi has an illness. High fever." Kisame wasn't sure how much he should repeat. Missing ninjas didn't like to admit any kind of weakness and illness was a big weakness.

"_What kind of an illness? It's okay, Kisame, tell me."_ Leader's voiced changed from calm to concerned, surprising Kisame.

"Chicken Pox." He braced himself, expecting laughter from the normally stoic man.

"_Did you say… Chicken Pox?" _He didn't laugh, but his words did hold a hint of disbelief in them.

"Yeah. I'm positive. He's developed some kind of complication and passed out a while ago. I haven't been able to rouse him since."

Leader was quiet for a few minutes, then spoke again. _"Kakuzu is in the area. Meet him in Firefly town, it should be a couple hours north of where you are now. There is one hotel in town, check in after dark and don't let them know Itachi is ill. Kisame, it is vitally important that he doesn't die. Itachi is… special and you were chosen as his partner partly to watch out for him. Kakuzu understands this as well, but as you know he can be a bit… contentious."_

"Yes. I will meet him there tonight." The communication was cut and Kisame returned his attention to his sick partner. He was surprised at Leader's revelation. Being put in charge of "babysitting" a young prodigy was not in his job description. Or so he had thought. He settled down to wait, leaning up against the wall of the cave, if they were going to arrive in town on time they would have to wait a few hours before leaving.

An hour before dusk Kisame quickly put the boy's shirt and cloak back on him then tucked the sandals into his backpack. As an afterthought he also removed Itachi's forehead protector and put that in the backpack as well. It might help keep him cool if he wasn't wearing it.

Kisame realized it would be easier to carry the boy if he could drape him over his shoulder, but if he vomited it would be very messy. Sighing in irritation Kisame picked Itachi up in his arms and walked out of the cave.

"You owe me big time for this, kid, and I _will_ think of a way to collect." The boy mumbled something and Kisame smirked, wondering if he was cursing him or dreaming.

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Reaching the hotel an hour after nightfall Kisame walked up to the front desk and whispered to the clerk, "My son fell asleep while we were traveling. Didn't have the heart to wake him up."

The small, elderly man bent over the boy. "He doesn't look a thing like you."

'Ah great!' Kisame thought to himself, 'We finally run into someone with half a brain and it has to be now.'

"Nevertheless," Kisame spoke in a threatening voice, "we require a room."

"I'm not going to let my establishment be a party your twisted ninja kidnapping games, or whatever else you think you need an underage boy for." The man was getting angry. "Wake him up."

"Dad…" Itachi mumbled, "Tired. Wanna go bed." Apparently Itachi was alert enough to hear the argument and respond to the man's query. He blinked his eyes open momentarily then closed them again. The light was too bright. Itachi was vaguely aware that someone was questioning Kisame about him being his son, but he didn't know why. However, working "undercover" had become so instinctive that he answered without having to think about it.

The innkeeper looked at the boy and frowned. "Genin, huh? Not used to the long hours?"

"Up forty-eight hours on a stakeout. Clan business. Now if you don't mind…" Kisame was beginning to loose his patience and he was also worried that Itachi, who had spoken and probably saved the situation, didn't know what was going on and might say something he shouldn't. His fever was very high and delirium couldn't be far away at this rate.

"Ah! Well, then let me take you right up to…" The man checked the register for a moment before continuing in a soft voice, "Room 24. Follow me."

After the clerk left Kisame let out a sigh of relief. He was very glad he had taken Itachi's forehead protector off. If the innkeeper had seen that the two of them wore different symbols he would have had to use force to get a room. And that would mean leaving town before the body was found. While Itachi was light for a boy his age, Kisame still didn't enjoy lugging him around the countryside.

The medium-sized hotel room had two twin-sized beds, a small table with four chairs and a couch. There was also a full bathroom. Quite luxurious for the area, actually, and Kisame had a passing thought about what kind of people usually passed through Firefly. However, he had other things that were more important to think about.

Itachi started to thrash around as soon as Kisame laid him on the bed. "Shit, Itachi. Stay still." He sat down next to Itachi and removed his cloak, shirt and pants, then put him under the blankets. Itachi kept mumbling and moving around. "Your fever is getting worse and you're starting to get delirious."

"Shisui… Aya needs you…" Itachi pleaded.

"Shisui is going to see Aya right now." Kisame answered, not know what else to do. He remembered Shisui from the mission two or three years ago in Mist. He was Itachi's older cousin and, as he recalled, they were very close. More like brothers. But he had no idea who Aya was.

"Oh good." Itachi settled down and Kisame straightened him out again and adjusted the blankets.

"I need a drink. Where is Kakuzu?" Kisame left the room in search of a bottle of sake and some take-out. Knowing Kakuzu he wouldn't show up until much later.

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Around midnight there was a knock on the door. Kisame blinked his eyes at the sound, suddenly realizing he had fallen asleep. Glancing across the room at the other bed he saw that Itachi had thrown off his blankets and was shivering. His body was covered in sweat and his face was red.

Standing up Kisame opened the door and Kakuzu walked past him, stopping at the foot of Itachi's bed. "Yep. Chicken Pox. He's a goner. You know, he does have a large bounty on his head. What do you say we split the difference?"

"What do you say, you heal the boy and I won't tell leader what you just said." Kisame sneered at the man standing in front of him. Kakuzu was wearing his Akatsuki cloak, but the front was open, revealing blue pants, a black shirt and a white scarf that wrapped around his mouth and nose like a mask.

Kakuzu stood looking at the boy with his eerily iridescent green eyes for a couple minutes then removed his cloak and backpack. Setting both on the floor he sat down on Itachi's bed with an air of annoyance.

"Where's your partner?" Kisame asked, suddenly wondering where Mitaka was.

"He also had a high bounty on his head. I decided to cash it in." Kakuzu spoke without emotion and started rummaging through his small pack.

"So both Mitaka and Shun are dead." Kisame spoke quietly. Word of Shun's death had already drifted through the Akatsuki a few weeks earlier. The now ownerless ring was the reason they were on their way to Earth country to meet up with Sasori. A recruit had been chosen to replace Orochimaru and Leader had asked Itachi and Kisame to accompany Sasori in retrieving him.

Kakuzu brought out a small book and leafed through it, then wrote out a list. "The kitchen probably has these items. Go get them." It was an order and Kisame curled his lip in anger. However, arguing would get them nowhere so he turned around and left the room, list in hand.

Kakuzu wiped Itachi's face off and placed a small piece of paper on his forehead. Activating a seal with a series of hand signs the kanji on the paper disappeared and reformed as the number "103". The man sighed in frustration. Placing his hands a couple inches over Itachi's chest he concentrated on sending healing chakra into the boy. The fever dropped to 100 and the raw skin where the boy had scratched healed. However, when he "looked" at Itachi's lungs he shook his head and cut off the chakra.

"Believe it or not I do have better things to do with my time than look after brats. Especially Konoha brats. Although, I guess since you are an Uchiha and not Senju I'll cut you a break and not charge you." Kakuzu still fumed over his failed mission, the one that, so long ago, made him a missing nin.

Assigned by Waterfall to assassinate the First Hokage of Konoha he had failed. Upon his return, half dead and badly demoralized, he had been disgraced and imprisoned by his own people. After escaping (and wreaking havoc on the village in the process) he had met up with the now-wandering Madara. Madara, it turned out, had left Konoha shortly before Kakuzu's assassination attempt. The Uchiha had tried to assassinate the first Hokage a few months later, also failing. Kakuzu felt a small (very small) amount of "kinship" toward the elder Uchiha after that, and willingly joined Akatsuki as their treasurer. After all, he believed his goal was the same as Madara's: revenge.

Itachi moaned in his sleep as Kakuzu untangled the sheet from the boy's foot. He had somehow managed to completely wrap it around his ankle. Itachi kicked in an unconscious attempt to free himself from whatever was restraining him. Kakuzu sighed again as he dropped the appendage and stood up, throwing the sheet on the floor.

Kisame walked in a minute later with a small bowl of dried herbs. "They had everything. Where do you want it?"

"Put it on the table and get me some boiling water." Kakuzu dug through his pack again and pulled out a mortar and pestle and started to grind up the herbs. He also pulled out a multi-compartment plastic container and measured out five different powders, dropping them into the herb mixture.

Meanwhile, Kisame plugged in the in-room electric kettle. Soon it was whistling as steam escaped through a small hole in the spout. Carrying it over to the table, along with a chipped white ceramic cup, he set both down in front of Kakuzu.

"Now comes the hard part… getting a bitter drink down the throat of an unconscious person. Without choking him." Kakuzu dropped a small amount of the herb mixture into the cup and filled it about a quarter full of the hot water. Stirring to combine the herbs and water he held it up, sniffing. "Perfect." He handed the cup to Kisame.

Kisame took it and walked over to Itachi. "If he's shivering, why don't we cover him up?"

"He has a fever of 100. If it goes up any more you'll be submerging him in ice."

"Humph. Okay. Well, Itachi, here it goes. It probably tastes bad, but you need to drink it." He put a little bit on the boys tongue and watched as Itachi subconsciously swallowed, then made a sour face. After about the fifth sip Itachi finally opened his eyes.

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Blinding light seared at Itachi's eyeballs as he slowly opened them. The first thing he noticed was that his mouth tasted awful. The next thing was that he had a horrendous headache. He felt a cup being put up to his mouth and realized he was being held up by someone with warm arms. Turning his head away from the cup he saw Kisame looking down at him and frowning. Itachi shivered, suddenly feeling very cold.

"Come on Itachi, just a little bit more and you can go back to sleep." Kisame's matter-of-fact voice held an edge of irritation as he held up the cup to show him. "It's medicine, it'll make you feel better."

Itachi reached for the cup but his arms were too heavy to lift. Kisame tipped the cup into his mouth and Itachi drank the rest, grimacing in the process. "What's wrong?" Itachi asked in a weak voice.

"You have a very bad case of Chicken Pox." Kisame answered, smiling.

"Impossible. Vaccinated." Itachi struggled to get the words out. His voice was hoarse and cracked as he spoke.

"Well, it didn't work." Another voice sounded from the periphery and Itachi turned his head to see Kakuzu sitting nearby at a table. "Take this medicine every four hours until it's gone. Even if you feel better, keep taking it. You should be up and about and ready to return to work in two days. There is enough medicine here for five days."

"Why so long?" Itachi asked.

"You have some abnormalities in your lungs. It might be caused by the illness, but it might be something else. Have yourself checked out when you return to Konoha." Kakuzu stood and started to pack away his things, then left without saying anything else.

Itachi drank some water then lay back down on his pillow. He wondered what Kakuzu had meant by "abnormalities". He wasn't coughing or anything and his chest didn't hurt. He was just tired, his skin itched, his joints ached and he had a headache. And now instead of cold, he was hot. Closing his eyes he quickly drifted back to sleep.

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Two days later Itachi was sitting at the table in the small hotel room feeling very conflicted and embarrassed. Kisame had looked after him, even going so far as to get medical assistance. It was the last thing he would have expected from a missing nin in Akatsuki. So how was he supposed to feel? What was he supposed to do? It was possible he would have died if left alone in the woods. Kisame may have saved his life.

He always felt a little more relaxed around the big man. Kisame didn't place many demands on him or require his attention. He would talk for hours and not care if Itachi listened or not. He lectured him occasionally, but it was never without cause, and his advice was usually useful.

Itachi sighed. Kisame was a violent man, that much could not be denied. He enjoyed murdering with his giant sword but always held back when Itachi asked him too. He would be upset for a short time, but always shrugged it off without holding any grudges. But still… he wasn't like Kakuzu who killed every single partner he had, or Sasori and Orochimaru who had killed tens of thousands of people, or Pein and Konan who were in league with Madara. Even the late Shun and Mitaka were extremely violent people who were wanted in many villages for horrendous crimes.

Then there was Kisame. He had left Mist because he had taken out a Daimyou. Pretty tame in comparison to the rest of Akatsuki, when you thought about it. The village seemed to look past his other "activities" of shredding his adversaries with Samehada. Other villages had put him in their Bingo books because of the aggressive nature of his attacks. He could take out dozens of shinobi on his own, without backup, and had done just that on several occasions. But his exploits still didn't match up to the others. When Itachi thought about it, they seemed pretty normal for an advanced jounin.

So why was he in the organization? What was Madara's reason for recruiting him? Or did Kisame have his own ulterior motives and was using Akatsuki to obtain some sort of personal goal? He spent the time he wasn't with Itachi traveling on what he called "business", but what was he really doing?

'In order to stop Madara, I'll probably have to kill Akatsuki. That probably includes Kisame as well. But… maybe if he isn't really loyal I won't have to.' Itachi was beginning to hope he wouldn't have to kill the shark-man, but Konoha would have to come first. That was the bottom line. And if Kisame got in the way…

The door opened and Itachi jumped, then looked back down at the table and frowned, annoyed at having been startled. Kisame smirked. The boy had been acting uncharacteristically shy all day. He thought that if he left for a while and gave him some time to think Itachi would have gotten over it. Apparently not.

"It'll take us three days to get to where Sasori is. We'll leave in the morning." Kisame sat down at the table, placing a bag of take-out in between them.

"Yes." Itachi answered in a calm voice, then looked up. "What do I owe you for the last two days?"

"I'll let you know." Kisame laughed at Itachi's confused look.

"Would you like money? I would be more than willing to pay you." Itachi didn't like the idea of a debt hanging over his head.

"You know I'm not into money. No point. We're shinobi, Itachi. That means we'll die young, making the accumulation of money a waste of time. Now eat. You should eat some meat to build up your strength. Really, I'm beginning to think you're a vegetarian. Doesn't your mother ever serve steak?" Kisame laughed again.

"Not really. She doesn't cook much meat. I never thought twice about it though. Even though she can afford it, she complains about how expensive it is." He accepted the proffered chicken and started to eat. He quickly realized he was very hungry and dug into the food like a man who had been starved for a week.

"Hmm. I guess that's pretty normal for mothers. By the way, how is Shisui?" Itachi jerked his head up from his meal, surprising Kisame. It wasn't that odd of a question was it?

"Why do you ask?" Itachi asked guardedly.

"At one point you called out to Shisui, telling him Aya needed him." Kisame saw no point in covering up Itachi's feverish ramblings.

"Is that all I said about him?"

"Yep. You were pretty quiet, really." Kisame wondered why Itachi was so defensive.

Several minutes passed and Itachi finished his meal. He didn't want to talk about Shisui, but since Kisame had known him, perhaps he should say something. Especially considering how helpful he had been the last two days.

"He's dead. Suicide." Itachi was surprised to see a twinge of sorrow in his partner's eyes. It was brief, but it was there.

Kisame was very surprised by the news. He remembered Shisui as being a cheerful, dedicated boy who stuck close to his comrades. On the other hand, he also knew a little bit about clans, being from one himself, and the expectations and stress often drove young ninja to desperation.

"Sorry to hear that." Kisame finally said.

"Aya was his girlfriend."

Kisame nodded in acknowledgement. He remembered that Itachi's other friend, Yota, had died during that Water country mission after being ambushed by rebels. Itachi had avenged the boy by taking out the remaining rebels single handed.

'I wonder how he avenged Shisui? Or is that why he is in Akatsuki?' Kisame's thoughts turned contemplative and he spent some time lost in his own memories.

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Traveling west for three days gave Itachi had a lot of time to think. While he could come to no conclusions concerning Kisame, he did realize that being partnered with him made it easier to move between Konoha and Akatsuki. Kisame didn't mind having to meet up with him in Fire country for missions and was quite accomplished at avoiding the Konoha ninja's who patrolled outside the village.

The other thing he though about, well, perhaps the correct phrase would be "fumed over" was a memory of when he was five years old. He had been in the hospital being checked over so he could be certified "healthy" for school.

"_Roll up your sleeve kid, and I'll give you your vaccinations for school." Itachi looked at the man like he had just sprouted a second head. _

"_I'm not wearing a shirt." The boy said, put out. His mother stifled a giggle. The medic looked up with shock. _

"_Oh, sorry. I'm a little frayed at the moment." He tugged on his white tunic to straighten it, then opened a glass case and stared at a piece of paper. Using his index finger he pointed to several items on the list then pulled three bottles out of the cabinet. He also pulled out three syringes and filled them with vaccine. _

"_Okay, little boy, I'd appreciate it if you don't attack me when I stick you with this pointy needle." Itachi was starting to get mad. Mikoto smiled as she guessed why this man was having such a bad day. He obviously had no bedside manner. He injected Itachi's left arm with the three needles. The boy didn't so much as twitch. He was looking the medic in the face, but the man refused to meet his gaze. "You're done. You can go."_

"_No." Itachi crossed his arms and sat very still._

"_No? Why not?" The medic's voice had a twinge of panic in it. This was turning out to be a very bad day._

"_I didn't get my lollipop." Mikoto turned and looked out the window again stifling her laughs. Itachi had such a sweet tooth that there was no way that medic was leaving without giving him his candy. The medic looked at the boy for second, went over to a jar, grabbed several lollipops and slammed them on the examination table. _

"_Here! Take your god-damned lollipops!" He walked out of the room mumbling about ungrateful kids, leaving his paperwork behind._

"_He gave me six candies, Mother!" Itachi had a big smile._

"_Well, then, put your shirt on and we'll go home." She smiled as they left the room. _

The incompetent fool was supposed to have given him several vaccinations. Itachi wondered which ones and if that was actually what he had received. He now suspected Chicken Pox had been missed. But what else? Was he going to catch Measles or Mumps now as well? Why hadn't any medic in the following years noticed a discrepancy? He made a mental note to consult with Dr. Yakushi on his return, then find out if that medic was still employed at the hospital.

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"Itachi, Sasori should be in one of the caves up ahead." Kisame said as he stopped walking and looked over the terrain. Central Earth country was a dry, rocky desert with almost no vegetation. Ahead of them was an area of rocky spires and deep canyons. A mountain range was in the distance, about a hundred miles away. Very little rain fell in the area, less that a quarter inch every year. The harsh wind blew dust around and both Akatsuki had covered their heads with fabric to protect their faces and eyes. They could still see through the loose weave of the white cloth, though, so it didn't block their vision. Luckily, the summer heat was still a couple months away so the temperature was tolerable.

Making their way into the canyon they used chakra to sense for enemies or Sasori, who in truth was probably only one step above being an enemy. The wind was stronger in the narrow canyon and they had to struggle at times to stay upright. The area was almost like a maze. The canyon cut around the bottom of massive rocks, sometimes leaving paths as narrow as six feet wide.

"I can feel his chakra." Itachi yelled above the wind. "It's straight ahead." Kisame lifted on hand to signal he had heard him, then they both continued walking. Soon they saw the puppet-master standing at the entrance of a cave, waiting for them.

"It's about time you showed up." His gravelly voice was grumpier than usual. "I've been stuck here for two weeks."

"And you loved every moment of it." Kisame walked into the cave and saw puppets scattered all over. It was one big workshop. Obviously Sasori had spent his time tinkering. "And for the record, we are on time. In fact, you said to arrive tomorrow so we're technically one day early."

"My spies have been tracking the boy and they have arranged for him to be at a local temple tomorrow evening at sundown. Why leader thinks a hyper-active mad bomber would…" Sasori continued the statement by mumbling to himself as he turned his puppet body and re-entered the cave.

Itachi stared at the scene before him. The cave had a few human-sized puppets laid out on the ground. He stared at them with his Sharingan and immediately noticed that their chakra systems were intact. There was only one way that could be and Itachi suppressed an urge to shudder. He looked over at Kisame and saw that the shark-man had come to the same conclusion via Samehada.

Sasori gave a short laugh. "I'll put them away." He was greatly amused at the intimidating effect his human puppets had on people. Pulling out a scroll he formed a series of hand-signs and the puppets disappeared, only to reappear as arcane words written on the parchment.

Finding an area next to the wall Itachi sat down and pulled some coal out of his pockets and started a fire. He needed to take the last dose of his medicine and as bad as it tasted, it was ten times worse with cold water than it was with warm.

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The temple took two hours to reach. It was located on top of a mesa that was reached via a narrow road cut into the rock. When they reached the top they saw about fifteen buildings arranged in a rectangle formation. Two bald monks wearing white pants and shirts with orange fabric draped over one shoulder were standing watch at the entrance. Kisame stepped forward and gave them a warning.

"We are conducting a meeting here shortly. Do not interfere and your chances of survival go up dramatically." He reached back and put his hand on Samehada's handle for emphasis. The two bald, orange clad men nodded once and ran toward a two story building opposite the temple and rang a bell. About five dozen monks and priests appeared. Most were small boys as young as four or five. They were all herded into the building, and some of the smaller children started crying in fear when they saw the three Akatsuki watching them. Older men picked up the crying children in an attempt to comfort them, and to get them out of the way faster.

Itachi watched them without expression. He wondered if the building they had run into had an exit, perhaps into an underground cave. "Is this an orphanage?" He asked.

"Some are orphans. Most of the boys are from devout families that believe one year of a man's life must be spent in service to God. The people in this region are very religious. They send the boys when they are still young so it doesn't interfere with the family's productivity." Sasori explained calmly. "I didn't realize there were this many people here, it's so remote. The nearest settlement is almost a full day's travel for a civilian."

The trio walked across the compound. The trees planted around the perimeter of the mesa created a very effective wind screen. The shrubs and flowers were well tended and there was even a grass lawn. It was a completely different world from the barren desert below.

Entering the temple they walked to the back and Itachi folded his hands and bowed respectfully to the deities. Kisame followed his example a few seconds later. Sasori, however, snorted in disgust and turned around to watch the entrance.

The interior of the building was about 1500 square feet but had a very high ceiling. The doorway was large enough to drive an ox-cart through and went all the way up to the ceiling. There were no doors. Through the doorway they could see the building the monks had disappeared into, a few trees, and the mountain range beyond. The floor was so highly polished it resembled a mirror more than wood. Three sides of the room were fenced off with statues of deities placed every few feet.

The statues themselves were famous in Earth country. The deities were dressed in old fashioned armor. A stone circle about six inches wide and three feet in circumference stretched from mid-back to a foot above their heads. Stylized flames were carved into the stone circle and extended over it. Inside the circle was a thin sheet of red material, onto which was painted another black circle with three black tomoes superimposed over it.

The image of the clean, almost sterile temple with the warlike deities standing motionless was quite a paradox. Itachi saw a plaque on the wall by the door and read that they were five-hundred-year-old statues from the royal residence of the last emperor.

"Someone's coming." Kisame said as he moved to stand next to Sasori at the back of the temple. Itachi walked over to stand next to Kisame, and all three faced the entrance.

Moments later a twelve-year-old boy with vivid blue eyes, long blond hair tied in a loose ponytail and wearing a Stone village forehead protector walked slowly into the temple. He had been looking around the compound, curious about the lack of monks. He wore all black. A fishnet shirt peaked out from under his white-trimmed yukata and his pants were short, only going mid-shin. His clothes were obviously too small for him and not very clean. He wore simple, worn-out sandals. The boy was shorter than Itachi by a couple inches.

He stopped a quarter of the way into the building when he saw three people standing in front of him. A hunched over middle-aged man appeared, almost, to be laying on the ground. Next to him stood a tall giant blue shark-man with a massive sword attached to his back. The last person was normal looking, a boy about his own age.

"Welcome, Deidara. We have been waiting for you. We are Akatsuki." Sasori's gravelly voice was not especially welcoming, but it wasn't hostile either.

"Akatsuki?" The boy dropped his hands to his sides and clenched his fists angrily, "The hell? Never heard of it. Get lost! I'm here to look at the art."

Sasori shifted his gaze to his two companions and complained, "Why do I have to get stuck with this kid? He's feisty enough, but he's also the sort that ends up getting himself killed off."

Itachi spoke calmly, "Leader's orders. He has talents the organization requires."

Deidara creased his brow, "You already know about me? Who are you, really?"

Kisame's stern voice answered him. "You are a terrorist bomber involved in several anti-nationalist terror cells throughout the surrounding countries. You have been linked to a number of explosions, correct? What reason would a rogue ninja like you do such things?"

"Reason? I need one of those?" Deidara cheered up and gave the trio a big smile, "People hire me to blow stuff up… with my art, un."

"Your art?" Sasori snapped angrily.

Deidara pulled out a white sculpture that had eight legs and two large eyes. It was his personal version of a spider. "Behold! Aren't you impressed?" His voice was full of pride and he continued to speak in a cheerful, boastful voice. "The product of pursuing refined line work matched with two-dimensional deformation! Un. This is art! But my art is more that this! My art is not static! In their physical form they are nothing more than models, un. But my art explodes! And with that explosion its essence is propelled to greatness. At that moment it becomes the work of art that I intended!"

The boy paused for a moment, then held the sculpture in his right hand and lifted his left hand, palm out. In the center of his palm was a mouth, and it was sticking its red tongue out at the three Akatsuki. "And it's in that fleeting moment of grandeur that I see true art, un. Art is a bang!"

Sasori sighed, "Damn. He's annoying."

Kisame looked down at the floor, bored, "Is he done yet?"

"Who knows…" Itachi took a step forward. He was bored as well. He remembered the kid from his first Konoha mission years ago. The boy was bruised, demoralized and willing to sell out his comrades due to spite. The Deidara that stood in front of him now was completely different. He was arrogant and probably on the fast track to the grave but he was cheerful. And, oddly enough, he hadn't recognized Itachi.

"Enough. I'll fight him." Itachi wanted to get it over with before Kisame or Sasori decided to take things into their own hands. There was a house full of young monks nearby and he didn't want to see them get hurt. He hoped that if the house had a secret passage the monks had enough sense to use it, just in case.

Deidara frowned at him, partially insulted over his great speech being ignored, and partially concerned about what the boy was about to do. He watched as Itachi formed his Sharingan. 'What is with those eyes?' He wondered.

He suddenly smiled. "You wanna fight me? Don't underestimate me or my art! My ninjutsu is the very pinnacle of artistic accomplishment, un!"

Itachi maintained his stony façade and spoke calmly, "If I win, you'll join Akatsuki."

Deidara reached into a pouch at his side and pulled out a clay centipede at the same time he threw his already made spider at Itachi. Itachi reacted by jumping backward at the wall behind him. Deidara put the first two fingers of his right hand up to his face and said "Katsu!" The word was one that evoked concentration, usually used by monks to help them with their prayers. Deidara had "borrowed" it, reasoning that he needed the same powers of concentration.

The back wall exploded, falling away to leave a gaping hole. Itachi dodged the explosion, skidding a few feet away from the hole. He stood shocked as he looked down at his feet and watched as a large centipede climbed up through the wooden floor and wrapped around his body.

"Is that all you got?" Deidara smirked. He was pleased that the fight was now about to end, in his favor. After all, he never lost. If these guys had done _any_ research _whatsoever_ they should have realized that and known better than to come after him.

But…

Why was Itachi smiling? Didn't he realize he had lost?

"You should take a closer look at yourself, first." Itachi said, looking straight at Deidara.

Deidara suddenly realized the centipede was wrapped around his own body and not Itachi's. Shocked he stood stock still, his hands motionless in front of him.

Kisame gave a short laugh. "That was a close call. You were just about to blow yourself up."

"As I said… he won't last long at all." Sasori said bitterly.

Deidara finally spoke, "Genjutsu? When?"

"From the beginning. You got caught from the moment you looked into Itachi's eyes." Kisame answered, his pointed teeth showed menacingly as he smiled at the boy in front of him. He had heard that Deidara was almost as good as Itachi, and he had to admit the boy's reputation made him sound powerful, but he wasn't impressed. He silently wondered if the boy would die from exploding himself or if Sasori would kill him first.

"Ah!" Deidara said in defeat, realizing that in his arrogance to expand his art he had skipped training in the one area his past sensei's had continually tried to stress on him. He was a Genjutsu type, they had told him, and he could become quite good at it if he trained. But Deidara did not consider Genjutsu art and refused. Now he was paying for it.

Looking up Deidara saw Itachi standing in the opening that had been blown into the building. The boy, who still had his sharingan activated, was standing on a pile of rubble with the exposed boards, wire mesh and plaster crumbling off the wall around him. Two of the deity statues stood on either side of him. The setting sun was directly behind Itachi's shoulder, creating a yellow halo around his body.

Deidara was suddenly struck with how much Itachi looked like one of the statues. A work of art the likes of which he had never seen. This was real art.

"Humph." Deidara suddenly came to his senses and buried his face in his hands. 'How could someone else's power do that to me? It was pathetic. I refuse… I will never call that art!'

"You lose." Itachi stated plainly.

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**Next week, Deidara "settles in" with Sasori, and the two Akatsuki teams go on a combined mission.**

**The third databook revealed Deidara's age as two years younger than Itachi, so that is something else I messed up on xD So I figure Deidara probably wasn't actually recruited until after the massacre which is why Itachi looks so tall in the manga (that had been bothering me). So then, I wonder if Sasori had another partner (or partners) in between Orochimaru and Deidara who got killed and that's why he was grousing about Deidara acting like someone who would get himself killed off quickly.**

**Also, considering Deidara's ability at deflecting Genjutsu during the Dei/Sasuke fight I am assuming that Deidara must be a Genjutsu type, but didn't study it because it wasn't "artful" enough for him. Remember, Sakura is a Genjutsu type and was able to deflect Kabuto's Genjutsu during the Chuunin exams in the stadium.**

**And Kisame? Why is he in Akatsuki? I keep wishing the manga would hurry up and explain. It would be nice if he wasn't really a "bad" guy and Kishimoto spared him… but that's probably just wishful thinking. Anyway, I hope him watching over sick Itachi wasn't fluffy. I wanted to show the odd "friendship" (if you want to call it that), that the two have.**

**Please review! This is the one-year anniversary so it would be great if everyone reviewed! Anonymous is accepted.**


	53. Chapter 53 Bath Time

**Last week Itachi came down with Chicken Pox and recruited Deidara into Akatsuki.**

**Thanks for all the reviews! You can always leave more, I really don't mind. In fact, I love reading them. xD**

**I went back and corrected some stuff in chapters 2, 3, 4. No events were changed, but I did restructure some sentences and corrected some grammar problems. If you have time go back and read it. I'm hoping to go back over some of the other chapters as well.**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns everything.**

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**Chapter 53 – Bath Time**

Deidara struggled into his new uniform, leaning against the back of a large rock for leverage as he stuck his feet into the blue stirrup pants. He was still in a very bad mood after loosing a fight with Itachi and was thinking of millions of ways to blow him up. Unfortunately "thinking" about it didn't make him feel any better. Plus, the fact that the pants and shirts were _exactly_ the right size was _really_ creeping him out. Just how long had these people been stalking him?

Walking out from behind the rock he stood looking at the trio who had "recruited" him one hour earlier. Kisame and Sasori were discussing something and Itachi was sitting on the ground with his eyes closed, meditating.

"You clean up pretty good, kid." Sasori's gritty voice was going to be very difficult to get used to. "However, you need a bath. When was the last time you went near water?"

"You take away my freedom _and_ you want me to take a bath? What are you, my father un?" Deidara sneered as he crossed his arms.

Itachi looked up at the boy with a curious look on his face.

"I take it that means never." Sasori said sarcastically.

"It's not '_never'_. And I _don't_ smell." He paused for a minute, then sniffed his shoulder. "Much. Who cares?"

Kisame laughed. Deidara really was something else, as far as he was concerned. Definitely more like a real twelve-year-old than Itachi was. "Don't worry, there's a bathhouse in the next village. I'll submerge him for you, Sasori."

"Put your cloak on, brat." Sasori ordered. Deidara gave him a dirty look and slipped on the cloak.

"It's too big." Sasori complained.

"So what? I'm still growing, un. In a few months it'll probably be too small." Deidara didn't think it was too bad, it was about a couple inches off the ground and would probably drag a little, but who cared?

"At least I got new clothes." Deidara grumbled. His old clothes were too small and he could barely fasten the pants. He kicked his foot a couple times. "And I like these shoes, un. They don't fall off. So when do I get to blow something up?"

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The bathhouse was an experience. Deidara was given a bucket, soap, washcloth and a towel. However, instead of sitting down next to the water trough he stood staring at the bathing accouterments with a look of confusion on his face.

"You look like you've never been to a bathhouse before. You aren't that dirty, so what gives?" Kisame laughed at Deidara.

"I take showers." Deidara mumbled. He looked around and saw that the other men and boys were sitting on benches and dumping water over their bodies and then scrubbing soap onto their skin and hair. "Showers are easier."

"Well, that's true. But then, you can't soak in a shower and the hotel we're staying at doesn't have any." Kisame started washing himself then scowled. "Scrub, boy. Believe me, you _do not_ want me to do it for you." Several men looked in Kisame and Deidara's direction and Deidara blushed, partially in anger and partially because he actually hadn't ever been to a bathhouse before and didn't like feeling the "odd man out".

Itachi smirked at the image a grinning Kisame scrubbing a screaming Deidara with a bristle brush and dunking him into the soaking tub by his pony tail. The boy did smell bad and Itachi had a passing thought about how well Sasori was able to detect scents through his puppet body. He wouldn't have thought he could with any accuracy, but obviously the puppet master did.

Deidara glanced sideways at Itachi who was by now covered in a soapy lather. Deidara rubbed the soap on his cloth and soon he was also covered head to toe in suds. He had even managed to reach around and wash his back. Dumping water over his head he got all the soap off and smiled. That wasn't so bad after all. He looked at the bottom of his feet. They were clean, but the dirt had stained them brown. Perhaps after a few more baths it would go away.

Looking around, Deidara saw that Itachi and Kisame were now soaking in a large square-shaped tub. Kisame waved him over and soon the three of them were neck deep in very hot water.

"So, does the water hurt your hands?" Kisame asked.

"Nah. They don't have throats so they can't drown so it doesn't matter, un." Deidara lifted his hands above the water, tongues wagging. "Am I going to get to blow something up tomorrow?"

"Is that all you ever talk about?" Itachi asked. There was no emotion in his voice and Deidara looked closely at him, trying to determine the nature of the question.

"Yes. It is my art, my reason for living. What is your reason for living?" Deidara answered sarcastically.

Itachi was quiet for a couple minutes, then answered in a quiet voice. "No one has ever asked me that before."

"And you never asked yourself, either?" Deidara knitted his brows, not believing what he was hearing.

"No. Should I?"

"Yes! Of course! Life sucks, kid. If you don't have a reason then why carry on, un?"

"Deidara, have you considered therapy?" Itachi was serious. There was something wrong with that line of reasoning. There was no reason an individual had to justify his or her existence in order to continue living.

"Been there, done that, un. Blew up the doctor's office, got in trouble. Oddly enough, my life didn't get any better, un. When I left Stone village it got better though." He gave Itachi a large, toothy grin and then smirked when the dark-haired boy glowered at him.

Kisame refrained from laughing. Watching Itachi and Deidara interact was an experience. Itachi appeared to be emotionally stunted and Deidara was over-emotional. Yet they still both managed to argue like two twelve-year-old boys. He supposed it was just a matter of time before they attacked each other. Unfortunately, that fight would be broken up fast. They were too powerful and could severely injure or even kill each other. And Leader wanted both boys alive and in working order. Too bad. Kisame loved to watch a good fight.

"We have a couple days to get to our destination, but if you want to play with your 'art' along the way, go ahead." Kisame's answer seemed to make Deidara happy, although Itachi suddenly felt a strong urge to stock up on aspirin. He could sense a weeks worth of headaches coming his way.

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The mission the two Akatsuki teams were assigned to was a double assassination. The two targets were S-class missing ninjas with ridiculously high bounties. Since Akatsuki's primary goal at the moment was accumulating funds the money had both Leader and Kakuzu salivating.

Of course, in order to execute the mission the two teams would have to go to where the targets were living, at the base of the mountains on the other side of the desert. All four sighed at the though of having to spend two more days walking across the rocky, windy, barren land. Then, of course, there would be the journey back.

The four began the trip early the next morning. Deidara watched his new companions carefully as he walked behind them. Sizing them up was his highest priority at the moment. Since Sasori had explained, in graphic detail, the horrible and painful death he would experience if he ran away, he had no choice but to tag along. However, he had no intention of trusting them and he suspected that if he was going to survive he would have to know as much about this "Akatsuki" as possible.

The blond boy's gaze drifted first to Kisame. The tall man seemed to be fairly cheerful most of the time, but his mood could turn dark quickly. That sword of his was quite intimidating as well. Deidara had touched it when Kisame's back was turned and it instantly started sucking his chakra. The shark-man had found that incredibly amusing. He had then placed one of his clay spiders on it and Samehada had sucked so much chakra out of it that it shriveled up, turning to dust. Exploding the remains caused nothing more than a small burst of flame. Kisame had then laughed loudly as he used a water jutsu to put out the flames on the fabric bandages that encircled the blade.

Sasori acted like a crotchety middle-aged man who had seen it all, done it all, and didn't care what anyone else thought. He spoke his mind and was quick to criticize. His real appearance and age was hidden inside the puppet he traveled in. However, he gained points with Deidara when he described himself as artist and the two had already spent several hours discussing art. Somewhere along the line Deidara found himself calling his new partner "Master Sasori" and he noticed that seemed to cause a small swell of pride in the puppet master.

The previous evening in their hotel room (Sasori had insisted on sharing one to make sure Deidara didn't try to run away) the man had pulled out a small sewing kit and hemmed up Deidara's cloak. He explained that he sewed all of his puppet's clothes and he didn't want some bratty kid tagging along with him looking like a tattered waif. He had done a good job, the robe fit perfectly. The fact that he had used a puppet to do the actual sewing was even more remarkable.

The person Deidara had the most trouble sizing up was Itachi. He had discovered that he was the same age as himself and still lived in Konoha with his clan. He further learned that the Sharingan, the Uchiha clan's Kekkei Genkai, was what had captured him. Itachi had severely hurt Deidara's pride and he couldn't forgive him for that. He made an oath to himself to strengthen his own Genjutsu abilities so that he could deflect the Sharingan's attacks and take down Itachi.

Deidara spent a lot of time watching Itachi to learn as much about him as possible. It was hard, though. The dark-haired boy was quiet and could hold his emotions in check perfectly. Even now, as he walked next to Kisame his footfalls were silent, his head was held as if perpetually alert, and every time he glanced back at Deidara his face was unreadable. He didn't joke around or say anything that was outside of the situation. Often he wouldn't even answer questions, just nod or shake his head.

The relationship between Kisame and Itachi was curious. Deidara thought it almost looked like a father-son or brothers. Kisame would occasionally look to see where Itachi was or what he was doing, often walking behind him to make the task easier. The previous evening at dinner Itachi had scooted his chicken to the far end of his plate and Kisame had reached over with his chopsticks, picked up the meat and deposited back in the middle of the plate and told the boy to eat it first. Itachi had given him a dirty look, but did what he was told.

If Kisame was watching over Itachi, it could make it harder to take out the boy. He would have to separate the two. Or perhaps he could just take out both? There were probably and endless number of possibilities. Deidara shook his head to clear it. He wasn't one to plan stuff anyway, so why start now? He decided to just do whatever he needed to do to become more powerful, then go with the flow until he stood before Itachi in battle. He smiled, of course he would win.

"Deidara! Keep up!" Sasori yelled and Deidara noticed that he had fallen behind the others. Sighing, he frowned and stopped walking. Apparently Itachi wasn't the only one with a babysitter.

They were still a day's journey from the mountains and the rocky Earth country desert was nothing short of boring. Deidara noticed the others were staring back at him now as well.

Grinning, Deidara reached into a pouch and grabbed some clay with the mouth in his hand. It chewed it for a few seconds then spit out a small white owl. Deidara threw the bird up into the air and yelled "Katsu". The clay figure expanded until it was about six feet long and it hovered near the ground, flapping its wings to maintain momentum.

Jumping on the bird's back Deidara flew about twenty feet over the heads of his companions and stuck his three tongues out at them. Sitting down, he made himself comfortable.

"Lazy brat." Sasori yelled. Kisame's hearty laugh drifted up to him. Looking down he saw Itachi's normally expressionless face had a hint of curiosity in it for once.

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The foursome made plans to camp overnight and made use of Deidara's scouting abilities to find a good spot. Sure enough, he located a spring that sprouted up out of the ground and even though it was still a couple hours until sundown they decided that camping next to water was worth the delay.

The spring itself was relatively small, only about ten feet in circumference. The water tasted amazing and everyone dumped their canteens in the desert to refill them. A few small shrubs sprouted near the water and one of them even had small white flowers blooming. Several large stones, about fifteen to twenty feet tall stood against two sides of the spring, as if protecting it.

"This place is man-made." Deidara finally told them several hours later. The black sky was filled with bright stars and even though there was no moon in the sky the earth seemed to glow.

"What makes you say that?" Kisame asked.

"A jutsu raised those rocks out of the ground. You can tell because of their color and texture. Well, not now, its night, un. But they are too dark and rough. The other rocks in the area are slightly lighter and blasted smooth from the grains of dirt and sand carried by the wind." Deidara noticed he had everyone's attention and grinned. "Stone nins probably knew there was a spring underground and used jutsus to bring it out of the ground, then put the rocks there to protect and mark it. That's how I knew it was here, un. I flew above the area looking for rocks."

"Logical. I've seen several of these outcroppings popping up in odd spots, but never checked them." Sasori admitted, annoyed that he had missed something so obvious.

Itachi looked back at the water, then looked over at Deidara. The boy was a paradox. Seemingly undisciplined and over-emotional, he nevertheless held quite an intellect. No wonder Madara had exerted so much energy into his training.

Looking up at Kisame, Itachi suddenly wondered if Madara had done the same to Kisame as well. Was the elder Uchiha raising children to be warriors in his personal service? He seemed to remember Madara telling him as much at one point.

Kisame was eleven years older than him and had been raised by his clan in Mist village. Although any specifics beyond that were still unknown. Itachi almost suspected at times that his partner had been an orphan.

Fugaku theorized that there was a branch of the Uchiha clan residing in Mist but so far all attempts at proving it had failed. Itachi wondered if it was true then perhaps it would have been easier for Madara to train Kisame than it had been to train himself and Shisui. Although, Madara had said that Kisame was not to be told who was in charge of Akatsuki.

"Deidara! Touch that and I'll amputate your hands." Kisame growled at the grinning boy.

Itachi looked over and saw that Deidara had been reaching for a small bottle of sake that Kisame had set on the ground.

"Awe! Come on, can't you share?" Deidara cajoled the older man.

"I may not be a paragon of virtue, kid, but I don't give sake to twelve-year-olds. Especially when it's my last bottle." Kisame gave Deidara a smirk then took a swig out of the bottle.

"Not fair. I've never even tasted it yet, un." Deidara was now teasing him. "Have you had any, Itachi?"

"Huh?" Itachi was a little shocked that he had been included in the conversation. "Um. Yes, I've had some. I didn't like it." He remembered back to when his betrothement contract was signed and he and Sheeta had been given a few drops of sake to celebrate. They had both hated it, much to the amusement of their parents.

"See, he got some, un." Deidara laughed

"Don't give him any." Sasori warned Kisame. "He's just being a pest."

"I don't know, Sasori. If you ask me we ought to get him drunk, paint his face with make-up, stick a dress on him and take photos. Sake is great for blackmail." Kisame was laughing now, too.

Deidara blinked twice then frowned. "On the other hand, I'll just have my water."

Itachi sighed. This was getting too weird. The bad thing was he could totally see Kisame pulling a stunt like that with Deidara just for the hell of it. He made a mental note to never get drunk in front of his partner.

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The village was spread horizontally across the flat plain right at the base of the mountain. None of the buildings exceeded three stories and most were comprised of only a single story. There was no wall surrounding it and when they came closer they saw old steel rods coming up out of the ground in random places. They also saw large sections of concrete decaying in the desert wind.

"There must have been several large buildings here a long time ago." Sasori volunteered. Once he said that Itachi started to see more evidence of a city that probably existed before the village did. It must have been huge. All that was left now was crumbled concrete and rusted metal. And you had to look close to see that much.

Reaching the outskirts of the village they stopped walking. Sasori spoke, "The targets run an inn that is really a gambling house. We'll have to go in together and take them out simultaneously. If we do it one at a time the other might interrupt the fight. They are S-rank and very powerful."

"S-rank!" Deidara's eyes went wide. He had never fought anyone that powerful before.

"That a problem?" Sasori laughed at him. His gravelly voice made the sound very creepy.

"No, of course not." Deidara said a little too quickly. "Does the building have to be standing afterward?"

"No, of course not." Sasori repeated his young companion's words and laughed again. Deidara gave him a weak smile.

"Let's do this in the morning then." Itachi spoke in a calm voice. "They will have been up all night and should be at their weakest point at 9am."

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Standing outside of the three story inn the four Akatsuki prepared to enter the premises. They had monitored the building for several hours the previous day and realized that everyone staying there was a customer of the illegal casino. A few Itachi recognized from his bingo book.

Itachi spoke first, "Kisame and I will go directly to the basement where the targets have their rooms. Sasori, set a trap at the top of the stairs after we descend. If any of them come running up you can get them. Deidara, set some explosives around the building to blow it up _after_ we exit, and backup Sasori if any of the targets leave the building."

"Why are we following _your_ orders?" Deidara frowned in annoyance.

Sasori reached up and hit Deidara on the top of the head, causing the boy to stumble. "Quit complaining and do your job, brat."

"Fine." Deidara mumbled. He stuck his hands into his clay pouches and pouted. He was really starting to hate Itachi. Not that he liked him much to begin with.

Itachi ignored Deidara's short tirade and entered the building, Kisame following a few feet behind him. They entered into a large room full of tables and a large bar that stretched the width of the wall opposite the entrance. Behind the bar was a narrow door. Itachi point to it and the two made their way through it.

The office was also large. About four desks and a large safe occupied the right side of the room and the left contained a couple couches, coffee tables and a small bar. There was also a wide staircase that led down to the basement. The stairs were carpeted in a luxurious purple with gold braiding running alongside the edges.

Sasori entered the room and Itachi watched as the man pulled out a scroll and summoned three puppets. Kisame nodded to him and he and Itachi quietly walked down the stairs.

Reaching the bottom the two Akatsuki were surprised to see a massive room many times larger than the inn above it. It was obviously a sublevel from a previous building, perhaps belonging to one of the collapsed structures they had seen outside of town. It was also brightly lit. That, and the lack of any traps or sensors put the two Akatsuki on guard. Something was definitely very fishy.

Kisame reached over his shoulder and pulled out Samehada. He shook it a couple times and the wrappings fell away, revealing a large silver-gray sword with sharp scales instead of a blade. He grinned, showing his chiseled teeth as Samehada pulsed with excitement. It could feel a lot of chakra nearby.

Activating his Sharingan, Itachi peered into the large space. It was easily a quarter mile wide, and empty. The periphery had several doors. The question now was which doors held their targets.

Kisame held up his fist, showed two fingers, then pointed to the nearest door. Itachi extended his chakra and could feel the faint signatures of foreign chakra. He nodded once to the big man and they both made their way to the door. However, they stopped a few feet away from it. This was way too easy and they both knew it.

Itachi ducked as an arm swung over his head. He quickly dropped to the ground and swung his legs around to trip the man but he was already gone. Standing up he looked around. There was no one there. Looking over at Kisame he saw he was looking around just as puzzled.

"Did you see that?" Kisame asked, angry.

"Yeah." Itachi answered. "That's why I still have a head."

"Humph." Kisame could feel Samehada throbbing. There was a powerful chakra source nearby.

Itachi replayed the attack over in his head. The Sharingan could capture details and play them back in slow motion, which was how the Uchiha clan was able to copy the jutsus of other ninjas. "One came out of the wall and the other came up from the floor."

"Well, well, well. What we have here is a scion of the infamous Uchiha clan." A blond man with brown eyes materialized out of the floor.

"And tonight's sushi dish." A second man, this one with blue hair and blue eyes, walked out of the wall.

Itachi recognized them as their targets. The blond was Fumio and the blue-haired man was Ukyou. They were notorious for their ability to combine forces and cheat people out of large sums of money. Including the governments of Wind, Waterfall, and Earth. All three nations were currently offering huge rewards for the men's heads. They were so notorious that even the Yakuza wouldn't even deal with them.

"So, what's with the matching outfits?" Fumio asked, laughing.

"Akatsuki is here to take your heads." Kisame sneered at the two men. He was not happy about being called "sushi".

"Not likely." Ukyou answered petulantly.

Both con-men stood facing off with the Akatsuki when an explosion shook the building.

"Dammit Deidara! We said blow up the building _after_ we leave!" Sasori's voice echoed down the stairs.

"There are fifteen people out here attacking me!" Deidara's voice could be heard faintly in the distance.

"There's only five! Quit exaggerating!" Sasori countered.

Ukyou and Fumio laughed. "Our clientele is very loyal to us. Your young friend doesn't stand a chance." Fumio replied.

"Itachi, didn't you say a while back that you had a new jutsu you needed to practice?" Kisame smirked.

"Yes." Itachi was looking at the man in front of him. Fumio was about five inches taller, medium build and wore only a pair of black shorts and a black t-shirt. "I haven't seen any blood in a few weeks."

Fumio heard his partner and Kisame engage each other in battle, but he was too busy looking at the boy in front of him to watch. Itachi's eyes turned from Sharingan into their Mangekyou form; black twin bladed irises on a palette of red.

The large, brightly lit basement suddenly turned into a flat red world with a black sky that had red clouds drifting rapidly across it. Fumio tried to move his hands to form signs for a jutsu and realized he was tied to a cross.

"Let me go you little bastard! How did you do this?" Fumio yelled angrily.

"This is my world." Itachi pulled out a Katana and stuck it into the man's stomach. Fumio screeched in pain. "Time passes according to my desires, and today, forty-eight hours of torture will suffice for one second in the other world."

Fumio cried out in pain as Itachi stuck him again and again with the Katana. "You will not die of your injuries, but your mind does not know that. It tells your nerve endings that what you feel is real."

"Stop it! What's wrong with you?" Fumio was panicking. He realized he was in a Genjutsu of some kind, but as experienced as he was it was unlike anything he had ever heard of. The boy in front of him was speaking in a calm, measured child's voice that was strangely eerie.

Itachi decided to try to stretch his Genjutsu and created one-hundred crosses and "Fumios". He added one-hundred "Itachis" to the scene and all of them stabbed Fumio repeatedly. The man continued to scream in agony. Itachi couldn't help but notice that the only thing missing was red blood. But then again, in the red world the blood would just fade into the background and be almost unnoticeable.

"Forty-seven hours, fifty-nine minutes and fifty-nine seconds to go." Itachi spoke without emotion.

Fumio couldn't stand it. The burning pain of the repeated katana slices was horrendous. He screamed and cried, pulling at the ropes that bound him. There must be a way to escape his brain kept repeating. Only one second had passed, how could that be?

After what seemed like an eternity the bright lights of the basement returned to Fumio's eyes and he fell to the ground, letting out a horrifyingly bone-chilling scream. His eyes stayed open, unblinking as he stared up at the ceiling.

"Fumio!" Ukyou, distracted, yelled for his comrade, shocked at what had just happened. Kisame took advantage of his opponent's momentary lapse of judgment and swung Samehada around, severing the man's head in one blow.

"Remind me not to piss you off too much." Kisame said as he approached Itachi. Fumio was laying on his back, mouth open in a silent scream, eyes wide and hands and legs lifted off the ground, frozen in a fighting position. "I think you broke his brain." Kisame laughed.

"Quite effective." Itachi smirked. He pulled his Katana out and severed the man's head. It was the first time he had used Tsukiyomi and he was pleased that it had worked so well. He felt a little tired, but it was about the same as a hard workout. He looked around the basement, checking his vision. He could still see Kisame clearly, and he could see the stairway and the doors at the far end of the large room. He wondered just how long it would take before his vision would begin deteriorating. Madara went blind eventually, but he was in his twenties when it happened. Or so Itachi assumed. He realized he didn't really know.

The pair packaged up the heads in plastic bags then placed a jutsu on them to prevent spoilage. The sounds of battle above them were still loud and they stood at the bottom of the stairs wondering if they should wait until Sasori and Deidara were finished or join in. Generally, ninja liked to finish the battles they started without interruption.

"We need to get out of the building in any case." Itachi finally decided. "Deidara might get carried away and blow it up with us in it."

"Yeah, he probably would." Kisame laughed.

They started walking up the stairs when Itachi missed a step and he stumbled. Shaking his head he looked back down at the stairs. He had, for a moment, experienced double-vision. Not expecting it he had placed his foot on a stair that didn't actually exist. Luckily he hadn't fallen.

"Itachi? Are you sick again?" Kisame spoke with a small amount of concern in his voice.

"No I'm fine." He started to walk back up the stairs but Kisame reached up and grabbed his shoulder, stopping him.

"Don't tell me that again, kid. What just happened?" This time his words were filled with anger. "I don't appreciate going into battle with someone who is too sick to hold his own. Especially when he lies about it. Sasori isn't exactly our ally and that Deidara kid would love to see your head on a pike, in case you hadn't noticed."

Itachi was taken aback and opened and closed his mouth a couple times, trying to think of something to say. Finally, he decided maybe the truth was better. After all, Kisame did have a point.

"Mangekyou Sharingan is the eye jutsu I used. The technique is called 'Tsukiyomi'. It will…" He paused, swallowing hard. Saying it out loud and to someone other than a clan member made everything sound so much worse. But then, that's because it was bad. It was the worst thing that could happen. "It will eventually rob me of my sight. Just now I saw double for a second."

Kisame looked down on the boy who was standing a couple steps above him. "Why, Itachi?"

The boy looked up the stairs, the battle apparently had ended. He could hear Sasori ordering Deidara to place the explosives so they could blow up the hotel. "I have to kill someone. After that…" He left the words unsaid. He really didn't believe Kisame would understand the details and he didn't feel like explaining them anyway.

Kisame patted Itachi a couple time on the shoulder and released him. "Life does that to us sometimes. Come on; let's get out of here before Deidara blows us up."

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The explosion was spectacular. The entire three story Inn exploded outward in an "artful" (according to Deidara) display of white, red and gold. The boy was very happy and grinned for hours as he flew over his three comrades on his white owl. He led them back to the same camping space they had used before.

Sleeping in turns they left Deidara on watch, only to be woken up about 3am when the boy shrieked.

"What the hell are you supposed to be?" Deidara stood up quickly and stuck his hands in his clay pouches.

"I think we scared the child."

"My eardrums are broken. Let's eat him."

'Must be Zetsu.' Itachi said to himself. Opening his eyes he saw the tall plant-man standing about six feet in front of Deidara.

"He's one of us, Deidara. Stand down." Sasori spoke calmly to Deidara and the boy relaxed a little. He turned his attention to Zetsu. "Are you here to collect the heads?"

"Yes, if you don't mind." Polite Zetsu answered. Kisame stood up and handed the two bags over.

"Deidara, this is Zetsu. He acts as our hunter-nin and delivers stuff. Zetsu, this is the new guy, Deidara." Kisame made a rather informal attempt at an introduction.

"Now we have two appetizers in Akatsuki." Robot-voice Zetsu looked over the boy. "And this one is smaller than the first one." He looked over at Itachi, sizing him up.

"We can't eat him yet, Leader hasn't told us to so stop complaining." Polite Zetsu reprimanded his companion, then disappeared into the ground.

Deidara's eyes were wide with shock. "Did… he… want to eat me?"

"Yes." All three Akatsuki answered the boy.

He took a deep breath and sat back down on the ground. Then quickly stood up, looking around at his feet. "He's not coming back is he?"

"Not this time. But if you keep waking me up like that I'll feed you to him myself." Kisame said grumpily as he laid back down on the ground and closed his eyes.

Deidara sighed, then sat back down. He was on the brink of drifting off on his watch before Zetsu arrived, but now he was wide awake. "What the hell have I gotten myself into this time?" He said out loud. Everyone heard him, but no one answered. After all, when you got right down to it they were wondering the same thing about themselves.

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**I know I said in the previous chapter that Itachi would be returning to Konoha but it didn't really fit. Deidara's last words here seemed to be the perfect chapter ending. So… next week Itachi returns to Konoha and has a talk with a certain medic and Danzou is concerned about all the recent assassinations.**

**Please review!**


	54. Chapter 54 Assassins and Medics

**Last week Deidara got a bath and Itachi, Kisame, Sasori and Deidara took out several targets for their bounty.**

**Thanks for all the reviews!**

**Disclaimer: oturaN snwo otomihsiK**

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**Chapter 54 – Assassins and Medics**

The Konoha hospital was one of the largest buildings in the village. Its large, stark white walls rose above the nearby businesses and the green foliage that surrounded it, making it easy to find even for visitors not familiar with the area. Even now, in the darkest part of the evening, street lamps reflected off the brightly painted building, bathing it in perpetual daylight.

Making his way through the dark, deserted streets of Konoha Itachi saw no other people. He had returned to Konoha a few hours earlier. After checking in with his father and attending a clan meeting he was now on his way to the hospital for an "impromptu" meeting with Dr. Yakushi about his vaccination records. Fugaku had mentioned that the doctor was working a late evening shift, though how he knew was a mystery.

"Itachi! It's been a long time since I've seen you." The doctor said pleasantly when he opened his office door. "What can I do for you?" He looked down at the boy, noticing that he was a little taller than the last time he had seen him, and had a grim expression on his face.

Itachi got right to the point, "I contracted Chicken Pox on my last mission and I would appreciate an explanation as to how that was possible if I was, in fact, vaccinated." He sat down without invitation and locked eyes with Dr. Yakushi. "I was quite ill and may have died if not for my teammates."

Dr. Yakushi blinked once in surprise. "Excuse me, Itachi. I will return momentarily with your file." He quickly left his office and made his way to the records room. When he returned Itachi was still sitting in the same position.

Sitting down he opened the file folder and addressed the boy, "Vaccinations are not one hundred percent. However, it should have at least lessened the effects of the illness if it was unable to prevent it. Let's see…." He turned several pages, looking back over Itachi's medical history. Finally he shook his head and closed the folder. "You don't have a vaccination record from when you were five. Did something happen that year?"

"Yeah." Itachi sighed, then related the incident with the incompetent medic who gave him three vaccinations and had no bed-side manner. He sketched a quick picture of the man and handed it to the doctor.

"I remember him. He was fired for gross negligence. Ended up killing three patients." Dr. Yakushi frowned and the memory. It was one of the worst months of his life and it kept coming back to haunt him. All three patients had minor infections and were only in the hospital for observation. Medic Touma had given them the incorrect medications causing one patient to die of an allergic reaction and the other two to die of overdoses. Touma hadn't even apologized and accused Yakushi of "overreacting", saying "patients die all the time, who cares".

"So where is he now?"

"Administration. His father is part of the Daimyou's personal staff and we were unable to completely expunge him from the hospital." Dr. Yakushi practically spat the words out and Itachi looked up at him with what appeared to be sympathy.

"Sit here for a minute, I'll collect the proper vaccinations and we can take care of it now. You were supposed to get two others that day as well. Since we have no way of knowing what you did get, I'll just redo them. Minus the Chicken Pox, since you already have anti-bodies now from catching it."

"Oh… Doctor? Can you check one more thing?" Itachi asked quietly.

"What?"

"The healer who treated me said there was something wrong with my lungs."

"Like what?"

"Nothing specific." Itachi stood up. "Can you check now?"

"Yes, of course. There is an empty examination room down the hall. Room 4A. Make your way there and I'll go collect the vaccinations and join you in a few minutes."

Itachi took a deep breath as he entered the examination room. Sometimes he was glad he was an assassin in ANBU. And when he took out that medic he would be glad of it again. He couldn't believe the man had killed three patients – three people who had come in sick and expected to leave healed – and got away with it. Not only did he get away with it, but he had been promoted.

"Mamoru Touma." Itachi quietly said his name.

The door opened and Dr. Yakushi entered. "Remove your shirt." He said, turning professional. He stuck Itachi with two different needles and then asked him to lie back on the examination table. Placing his hands a couple inches over the boy's chest he activated his chakra and slowly moved his hands over where the lungs were. He creased his forehead and stopped at several places for a closer look.

"Itachi, there is something there." He withdrew his hands and looked down at Itachi. Despite the determined look on his face, the boy looked so young, still just a child. 'Or maybe I'm just getting old.' He thought to himself.

"What do you think it is?" Itachi's voice cracked a little bit and the doctor smiled, despite himself. Perhaps he wasn't that young after all. Itachi cleared his throat in annoyance. His voice had been acting up in the last couple days. When it had started he was still traveling with Kisame and the shark-man had laughed at him, then teased him about "becoming a man". His own parents had even given him wistful smiles; which were expected perhaps from Mikoto, but on Fugaku it was just creepy.

"I need to run some more tests." Dr. Yakushi stepped away from the exam table and crossed his arms.

"So it's not related to my recent illness?" Itachi sat up.

"Definitely not. However, there are other things I need to check for."

Itachi sighed. "Could it be what Fumitake had?"

"That illness starts out with the same lesions you have now. However, it is not the only illness that causes them. Also, we got a hold of Fumitake too late to really treat him with any success so don't work yourself up." Dr. Yakushi tried to reassure Itachi, but he realized that the boy was too intelligent to be deceived. Really, the chances that Itachi had that disease were almost one hundred percent, and they both knew it.

Itachi pulled his shirt on over his head. "How long before I would start experiencing symptoms?"

"Three or four years. If you have it, you will catch colds that easily turn into bronchitis or pneumonia." Dr. Yakushi sighed. He imagined Fugaku's disappointment when he learned about his heir and a wave of sorrow passed over him. "Itachi, we don't know for sure if you have it yet. If you are free one day this week make an appointment with the receptionist on your way out and I'll make a full diagnosis."

"Thank-you for your time doctor. Give my regards to Kabuto." Itachi walked to the door and opened it, then paused. "I suppose it would be pointless to ask you to keep this news from my father."

"What would you have to gain if I did?"

Itachi thought about that for a moment. Fugaku had plans to use Itachi to kill Madara. It was possible he wouldn't survive the encounter. If that was so, then having an incurable illness wouldn't matter. "Nothing at all. Never mind."

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The next afternoon Itachi walked silently down the hall of the hospital's administration offices. He was looking for room 281. People passed him in the crowded hallway, but due to a Genjutsu he had cast over himself no one saw or sensed he was there.

Dressed in his black ANBU gear, including his rat mask he approached the room he was searching for. Lifting up his mask he rested it on the top of his head and opened the door. Touma was sitting behind a desk covered with various file folders and a computer.

"Who are you? Get out!" Touma yelled indignantly. "This is administration and patients have no right to be here."

Itachi entered the room and closed the door softly. He activated his Sharingan and stared down at the seated man. "Mamoru Touma."

"I told you to get out!" The man's face turned red with anger and he stood up. "I'm not afraid of you useless ANBU brats."

Itachi moved to the other side of the desk so fast Touma only saw a blur before he was pushed up against the wall with a katana placed against his throat.

"Are you afraid now?" Itachi said calmly. Even though he was a head shorter than Touma he had no problem immobilizing him. He struggled to escape, but couldn't gain an inch.

"I am going to have you kicked out of the ninja corps! How dare you attack and threaten an administrator." Touma's voice had gone up a couple octaves and he started sweating.

"No, I believe it is I who will have you kicked out of the Medic corp. You've done enough damage and it's time you paid for it." Itachi usually wasn't this talkative when he went after a target, but Touma was angering him. He suddenly realized that he if carried on like this he could open himself up to mistakes.

"Help!" Touma started yelling, "Please, don't kill me! I'll give you anything you want, I'm rich I can get you money, anything! Please don't kill me!"

Itachi finally had enough and drew the length of the sword across Touma's throat, severing the head in one clean stroke. He watched the blood drip off the sword, the fluid that gave life or took it away. It had always fascinated him how such a simple liquid, in his favorite shade of red, could be so important. Wiping the blade on the man's clothes he sheathed it and left the room.

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Late July found Itachi sitting in Danzou's office, staring at various maps of Konoha. The old man was sitting comfortably behind his desk, a serene look on his face. "There have been several assassinations of highly placed individuals within Konoha in the last few months. The police have been unable – more like 'unwilling' – to catch the perpetrator. Therefore I am assigning you. I want the assassin dead, Itachi. Not caught."

Itachi looked over a list of names. "This one I did." Itachi said calmly.

"Oh? 'Mamoru Touma, hospital administrator'. Why would you do that?" Danzou's brow creased in curiosity.

Itachi looked the man straight in the eye. "He messed up on my vaccines and I got ill and almost died. He had also killed three previous patients and got away with it."

"And you felt that gave you the right to kill him?"

"Yes." Itachi's plain answer surprised Danzou, but he smiled anyway.

"I guess I can't argue with that. One more example of corruption, but you took care of it appropriately." Danzou was pleased with Itachi's initiative. A medic who killed patients was definitely an enemy of Konoha. "Can you kill this assassin in the next week?"

"Yes. Is that all?" Itachi stood up as he spoke.

"You may leave." Danzou looked down at his desk, returning to his paperwork as Itachi left the room. He looked at the closed door and smiled. He notice Itachi's voice had finally changed. It was deeper, the same timbre as Fugaku's, but smoother with a "cultured" sound that made him sound patient and calm. Danzou gave a short laugh. In another year or so he would probably have half the teenage girls in the village chasing after him. He shook his head and returned to his paperwork.

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"Shit!" Itachi buried his head in his hands. After leaving Danzou's office he had gone straight home and shut himself in his room. "How could she be so careless?" Itachi picked up a book and threw it at the wall, then stood up and started pacing. "What am I going to do?"

He heard voices in the hall, his mother and Aya. A moment later his father's voice joined them. Itachi pursed his lips in anger. He had no choice. Exiting his room he caught his father's eye.

"Excuse me." Fugaku moved away from Mikoto and Aya, who were standing outside of the master bedroom.

"Father, I need to speak with you." Itachi spoke with an air of urgency and Fugaku immediately turned around and started walking towards his meeting room. Itachi followed a few paces behind.

"What's going on?" Fugaku said once the doors were closed. They were standing in the middle of the room.

"Aya had been careless. Too many targets too quickly." Itachi looked his father in the eye with a stern expression.

"So Danzou has taken over the investigation." Fugaku returned his son's gaze. "How long does she have?"

"Probably a few days. He asked for the death of the assassin. I can't put it off for too long, I'm too good to claim I can't catch her."

Fugaku was silent for a few minutes. Almost all of the targets had been taken out. The remaining ones could be killed later by Mikoto. However, he had to think about what to do with Aya. Actually, there really was only one thing he could do.

"Aya will have to leave the village for a couple years. When the coup is completed she may return without reprisal." Fugaku sighed. "She isn't going to like this."

Itachi thought about it, then asked, "Where can she go?"

Fugaku put his hand to his temple and shook his head. "Perhaps Madara…"

"No!" Itachi said vehemently. "I forbid you to hand her over to him! He would find a way to use her and it would hurt all of us!"

"Itachi! Think for a moment… It's very possible there is a branch of the clan in Mist village. If we hand Aya over to Madara where would he take her?"

Itachi closed his eyes and clenched his fists. His father's logic was correct this time. Aya had to leave the village. She had to go someplace she wouldn't be recognized. And they needed to find out if there was an Uchiha clan in Mist village. Everything fit together too perfectly. But he didn't like the idea of using Aya for such a dangerous endeavor. Sheeta and Nui would be broken-hearted at their sister's disappearance and Shisui…

"Dammit father!" Itachi turned around and faced the wall, clenching his fists in anger.

"Call him Itachi. Call him now." Fugaku's voice was so low he was almost whispering.

Itachi left the room without speaking and made his way to his bedroom. Shutting the door he opened a loose floorboard and pulled out the bracelet he had been given so many years ago. Clenching it in his fist (it no long fit his wrist) he called Madara.

"_Itachi, it has been a while since we last spoke. To what do I owe this pleasure?"_ Madara's deep voice held a hint of amusement.

"Fugaku needs a… 'favor' so to speak." Itachi spoke hesitantly.

"_Fugaku?" _

"Safe haven for clanswoman."

"_Aya?" _

Shocked, Itachi was silent for a minute. Madara always seemed to be one step ahead of everybody.

"_I suspected she was on the road to trouble a long time ago. Itachi, that girl is trouble. I am surprised Fugaku lets her live."_

Itachi had trouble disagreeing with that. He had to admit that he may not be viewing the situation objectively, but then she was his dead best friend's girl-friend. And Shisui had asked him to look out for her.

"He probably needs her to bear children for the clan." Itachi volunteered.

"_Well, I guess I could do that then." _

"You will not!" Itachi spoke loudly.

Madara laughed. _"Sorry, Itachi, I spoke out of place. I meant I will give her safe haven."_

Itachi wasn't convinced, "That better be what you meant."

Madara laughed again. _"I will arrive in two days. You or Fugaku should bring her to our old training site outside of the village at dusk. Have her pack light. I will provide funds for her to purchase what she needs when she arrives at our destination."_

"Where will you take her?" Itachi knew that Aya would want to know.

"_There are a couple possibilities. I will decide later."_

"Yes. Okay. Thanks for helping her." Itachi closed his eyes as Madara cut the communication.

"I've done what I could Shisui. Please don't hate me for handing her over to Madara." He suddenly wondered if killing her would be kinder. Was their misunderstanding about children a miscommunication or was the elder Uchiha hinting that he found Aya attractive and wouldn't mind impregnating her? Itachi shuddered. Aya was legal age now, but still she was only fifteen. Marriage contracts _usually_ weren't given out until one was eighteen, and most shinobi didn't marry until they were in their twenties or thirties.

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"Father, everything is taken care of." Itachi spoke as he entered the meeting room. Aya and Mikoto were in the room speaking with Fugaku. Aya was wiping her eyes and sniffing.

"When?" Fugaku asked sternly.

"In two days at dusk in our old training spot. Pack lightly. He will provide funds to purchase what is needed."

"Who am I going with?" Aya said softly.

Fugaku looked down at the girl and frowned, "Madara Uchiha."

"He… who?" Aya had only ever heard of one person name "Madara" and he had died a long time ago.

"It's a long story, but suffice it to say that he is alive and kicking and is coming to take you someplace safe until after the coup. Do not tell anyone else about him. He's definitely more trouble than he's worth, but maybe he can make himself useful this time." Fugaku sat down on the small dais and leaned back on his arms.

"And Aya…" Itachi spoke, gaining the girl's attention. "Watch out for him. He already knows who you are and I suspect his intentions aren't… Just…" He struggled to find a good way to say it. He suddenly felt like a twelve-year-old kid instead of a powerful genius ninja.

Mikoto saved him, albeit a little bluntly. "No sex, Aya. Don't let him draw you in." The girls eyes went about three sizes bigger and her face turned beet red.

"Do I really have to go with him?" She said in a small voice.

"It'll be okay, just stay on your toes." Mikoto gave the girl a hug. "Now go home and get ready."

Fugaku spoke calmly, "Do not tell anyone but your family you are leaving. And they are not to know about Madara."

Aya dropped to her knees and pressed her head to the ground, "Thank-you Lord Fugaku, Lord Itachi, Lady Mikoto. This is all so much more than I deserve. I will repay you someday. I promise on my life."

"As it should be. Come here an hour before dusk the day after tomorrow. You may leave now." Fugaku dismissed her and she exited the room, followed closely by Mikoto.

"Dammit!" Fugaku hit the floor with his hand. "Now I owe that bastard a favor. That girl had better be worth the trouble."

For the first time in a year Itachi found himself agreeing with his father. A deal with the devil would be more straightforward and legit than a deal with Madara. That was a man the devil himself would shy away from.

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Aya spent her last days in Konoha visiting her favorite places and talking to all the friends she had made. She couldn't tell anyone but her family, Kisa and Toshiro that she was leaving and that made it harder.

Crying over Shisui's grave she begged his forgiveness and wondered if he would give it. He was a kind-hearted boy, but she also knew he tended to hold onto grudges. She had killed a kinsman and Shisui would never have approved of that. Even if she felt she had a good reason. Even if she did it to protect Itachi's secret.

"_Aya, thank-you for meeting me here." Inabi smiled and stepped closer to the teen. He put his hands on her shoulders and she stepped backwards away from him._

"_Don't touch me. I don't like you." Aya said angrily._

"_Ha! You don't have a choice. Aya, you will marry me when you turn fifteen. You will be my ladder into the main branch." Inabi smirked at the girl and put his hands in his pockets._

_Aya snorted in derision, "What makes you think that?" _

"_I know why Shisui was killed. And it's something you will give your life to keep the clan from discovering."_

"_Oh, what?"_

"_Mangekyou Sharingan." He realized Aya didn't know what that was and explained, "It is an advanced Sharingan that is obtained by killing your best friend. A long time ago the Uchiha clan would pit friend upon friend to create the ultimate ninja. It was banned as a forbidden jutsu, but everyone knows about it. Itachi is a genius and without any morals. He killed Shisui and now has the Mangekyou. If the council were to find out he would be killed for having it. If you want to keep your 'friend' alive then you'll be a good little girl and marry me."_

"_What makes you think he has it? Can you prove it?" Aya wasn't sure she even believed this "Mangekyou Sharingan" existed._

_Inabi pulled out an old scroll and handed it to her. It was a short discourse on the training methods of the Uchiha ninja clan from almost one hundred years ago. As she read it her eyes opened wide in disbelief. Had Itachi and Shisui truly fought to the death? If so why? What would attaining this horrid jutsu give someone who was already powerful?_

"_If I go to the meeting tonight and announce my suspicions the council will immediately turn on Itachi, demanding resolution. If it is discovered he has it, and they will know Aya, he will be killed immediately and Fugaku will be accused of covering it up. His leadership will come into question. It would be a direct violation of the oath he took when he assumed his position as chief."_

_Inabi looked down on the startled teenager with an air of superiority and smiled. "So Aya, what will it be? Civil strife within the clan or marriage? You have two minutes to decide."_

_Aya didn't know what to do. She had no chance to check if Inabi was lying or not. Panicking she walked close to Inabi and put her hands on his chest. She then quickly pivoted around on her left foot and brought her right leg up, kicking him off the cliff. Jumping down with the use of chakra she found him sprawled out, moaning in pain. Silently, she picked up a rock and brought it down on his head, crushing it._

When questioned about the murder by Fugaku she realized that if he found out Itachi might have the Mangekyou Sharingan he would kill his son. She couldn't let that happen. So she played along with him, half-way hoping he would kill her. But instead he made her an assassin.

Aya had considered killing herself several times since then, but she couldn't bear the though of leaving Sheeta and Nui alone. Especially Sheeta. They had looked after each other to the point of being inseparable. And now they were going to be separated. Aya couldn't get over the feeling that something bad was going to happen if she wasn't here, or that she would never come back.

Holding the necklace Shisui had given her in hand she looked at it closely. She was afraid to take it with her. What if it was stolen? On the other hand, if something happened and she had to fend for herself she could sell it and use the money. Although she truly didn't feel she could actually ever sell it. Finally, fashioned a small pocket in the lining of her bra and slipped it in, adjusting it near the bottom of the cup so it wouldn't be noticeable.

"I am saving Itachi for you, Sheeta. So you can be happy. Please don't hate me for leaving." Aya shouldered her backpack and put on a cheerful face. After all, her family, Kisa and Toshiro had gathered to see her off, thinking she was going away on a long-term mission and would be back in a few months.

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The trio made their way out of the village and into the woods. The late summer evening was noisy with the sound of birds and cicadas. As the sun set over the horizon the sky turned pale blue, then white. Aya looked up into the sky and saw the evening star twinkling through the trees.

As they walked into a small clearing a tall man in a mask could be seen leaning up against a tree. "Good evening Aya, it is a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Hello." Aya said shyly. She looked at Madara and was more than a little intimidated. He was dressed all in black, with leather armor plates hanging down from his waist. His face was hidden behind an orange mask that had one eyehole. His chakra was completely hidden; she couldn't sense it at all.

Fugaku stepped forward, "I trust she will be treated well?"

Madara caught the hidden meaning and smiled under his mask. "Like a princess."

Itachi raised an eyebrow and Madara looked at him and asked a question, "How will you explain her escaping?"

"I am going after a woman in our Bingo book. She happens to be in the next village and known for her assassination skills. It is a perfect frame-up. My sources tell me her current target is a business-man in Konoha so the story fits as well."

Aya hung her head, feeling bad that someone else was going to take the wrap for her crimes, even if that person deserved it. "Then…then I guess we better get going." Aya stepped forward, afraid that if she waited any longer she would loose her nerve and run back home. She looked over at Itachi and stopped. "Itachi, please watch over Sheeta."

"I will." He said quietly.

"Lord Fugaku… thank-you for everything." Fugaku nodded once and she walked up to the masked man.

Madara turned around and started walking away, Aya followed a few paces behind. She heard Fugaku and Itachi also turn around and head back to Konoha. Wiping a tear out of her eye she sighed and steeled herself for the journey.

They had walked about twenty minutes when Madara suddenly stopped and turned around. He looked down at the teenager for several minutes without moving or speaking. His chakra was still masked.

Aya returned his gaze, trying hard to reign in her growing fear. What if he didn't intend on taking her anywhere, but instead was going to kill her? "Please…what… what's wrong?" She finally stuttered out her words.

Madara still didn't answer. He really didn't know what he was going to do with her. She was a liability, a young girl who had messed up a simple assassination mission. The trouble Fugaku had to put himself in to save her was not something he would have done when he was clan leader. He would have killed her. In fact, he still could. His hand twitched as he imagined the feel of a knife slitting the girl's tender throat.

"Why should I let you live, Aya?" He finally said as he unleashed his chakra in a wave of malevolence.

Aya shuddered and blinked back her tears. "There… there probably is no reason. I…I…wi…will not d…demean myself by b…begging for my life."

"Humph." Madara had to admit that the little girl standing in front of him and shaking like a leaf was pretty brave to say such a thing. He sensed that she even meant it.

"If you mean to k…kill me, pl…please just get it over with." She looked down at the ground, then dropped down to her knees and sat on her legs.

Madara sighed. Why were teenage girls always so dramatic? He almost felt like clapping at her performance. Except the girl was serious and not acting.

"Stand up. I have a use for you, princess." He reached over and put his hand on her shoulder after she stood up. "We are going to Mist village. I will place you into my household and when you turn eighteen, marry you to a man of my choosing."

"Yes, Lord Madara." Aya said softly.

"Mizukage. I am the Shadow that watches over the village hidden in the Mist." Madara released her shoulder and started walked away. Aya pushed down her fear and trailed behind him, wondering what kind of man someone like Madara would consider "husband" material. She feared she would not like the answer and decided that, perhaps, not thinking about it would be the best thing to do right now. That was three years away and anything could happen between now and then.

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Watching the pair walk away, Itachi and Fugaku sat side by side on a heavy branch overlooking the spot where Madara and Aya had their "discussion" only moments earlier. Both were silent for a long time as they digested the odd conversation.

It seemed, for all intents and purposes, that Madara had fully intended to kill the girl. Why had he backed off? Should that worry or please them?

Fugaku was the first to speak. "At least we know for sure he is the Mizukage. Not that it's a surprise. I've suspected as much for years."

"The old 'final exam' was a bit of a give-away." Itachi volunteered, bitterly. He, of course, was referring to the exam given at the end of a students Academy education. The "final" pitted two students against each other in mortal combat. The winners would become Genin, the losers died. Zabuza Momochi had ended that tradition by slaughtering the entire graduating class one year. He hadn't even been a student at the Academy at the time.

"We still don't know if there are Uchiha in Mist. 'Household' could refer to anything." Fugaku sighed in frustration.

"What did you expect? You know he knew we were up here." Itachi stood up and jumped to the ground, then looked up at his father. "I'm going to go collect that head."

"Yeah." Fugaku said quietly.

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**Next week, Itachi has a strange day that makes him reflect on his past and his plans.**

**Well, Itachi got his revenge against the medic who messed up his vaccinations. I hope his reaction to Danzou asking him to kill the assassin wasn't too OOC. I really don't see anyone, including Itachi, as being "calm and collected" all the time. And if he was going to loose his cool at all it would be after being told to hunt Shisui's girlfriend. Also, he was alone at the time so he didn't have to worry about someone seeing him.**

**Please review! Anonymous reviews are okay.**


	55. Chapter 55 One Day in September

**Last week Aya was given safe haven by Madara and Itachi took out a crooked administrator.**

**I went back and corrected chapters 5 – 10 for grammar and spelling. I'm hoping to get a lot more than 5 chapters corrected in the next week… really, I should have done this a long time ago. **

**Thanks for all the reviews! More are always welcomed xD**

**Disclaimer: oturaN snwo otomihsiK**

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**Chapter 55 – One Day in September**

"He brought back the wrong head." Danzou was in his office, the two elders Homura and Koharu were sitting across from him.

"You are sure the assassin was Aya Uchiha then? The head he brought back came from a woman who _is_ a known assassin and is also in the Bingo books." Koharu said in her usual biting voice.

"Positive."

"So now what? Should we call him on it?" Homura asked sternly.

Danzou had been wondering the same thing. While Itachi had been passing small bits of information to him now and then, none of it ever added up to anything big. It was disappointing. He had hopes for the boy; he had wanted to turn him against his clan, to create an Uchiha ninja that was loyal to the village, loyal to him.

The silence in the room seemed to mask everyone's thoughts as they sat

contemplatively and waited, unhurried. Time had favored them with old age and they in turn accepted the pauses that time handed out.

The two elders were Sarutobi's teammates back when he was a Genin. This meant Danzou had to be careful how he handled them. While they may not agree with everything the Hokage did, they would not break their old bond with him by rebelling. The only way to get the two on his side fully and completely would be to take out Sarutobi. And Fugaku was the only person in Konoha who could accomplish that. Unfortunately, Danzou couldn't allow things go that far.

"Hmm. Aya is no longer in the village. She just up and disappeared a month ago. However, the assassinations have continued. Two more people have died. And _this_ assassin we have not been able to discover the identity of. I am sure it is an Uchiha, though." Danzou spoke in his usual calm voice, his one un-bandaged eye half open.

"Could it be Itachi?" Homura asked.

"Possibly." Danzou nodded once. "He is that good. But… another possibility is that it is Mikoto. His mother. Aya spent a lot of time with her in the last few months. I pulled her file and she was a top rated assassin when she was in her late teens and early twenties and in the Bingo books of the four other big shinobi nations."

Koharu snorted. "So we have her arrested."

Danzou's tone turned sarcastic, "The wife of a clan chief? How? Our only chance of stopping her would be if we assassinated her. But none of my ANBU, regular and ROOT would be able to get close to her. I don't know if Itachi could even do it." He had read through Mikoto's file twice. He remembered her as a jounin, but because his focus had always been on Fugaku he had not paid much attention to her abilities. What he did remember was a woman the Hokage would send on difficult missions that he didn't want to hand over to ANBU. She had a one-hundred percent success rate and about one in five of her assassination missions were solo. This was not a woman to be trifled with; no wonder she had been selected as the clan chief's wife.

"If this happened in July, why did you wait until September to discuss it with us?" Koharu asked.

Danzou folded his hands and placed them on top of the desk, "I was hoping he would come to me. However, that never happened. So instead I will be going to him. In another hour I am planning on confronting Itachi about his clan's suspected coup."

"Humph." Homura folded his arms in front of him. "That's a daring move."

Danzou smiled, "The coup needs to be stopped."

Koharu and Homura stood up and walked to the door.

"We will be awaiting your report, then." Koharu said as they left the room.

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Itachi sensed something was wrong as soon as he entered Danzou's office. He got a faint whiff of Koharu's perfume and knew that where she was Homura was never far behind. Recently, probably within the last hour, the two council members had met with Danzou.

"Have a seat. I have something to discuss with you." He pointed to a cushion opposite his desk and watched closely as Itachi sat cross-legged, his hands on his knees. "Itachi, I'm going to get right to the point. It has been suspected for a long time now that Fugaku Uchiha is in the process of planning a revolt against the Hokage. What do you know about it?"

"What do I know?" Itachi said quietly. He was not expecting this when he was summoned and was at a loss as to what he should say or do. He hadn't planned on revealing that particular clan secret to the ROOT division commander, or at least not yet.

"Thousands of people could be killed if this comes to pass, Itachi. Surely you have already realized that." Danzou's calm voice had a hint of sorrow in it. He knew the teenager loved Konoha and would be upset if anything happened to it. He also had read through the report Aki Nojima had written concerning Itachi's reaction to the valley of corpses they had encountered in Water country. Death was not something Itachi liked to see and coupled with his nightmares Danzou was sure a course of "emotional blackmail" would sway the boy against his father.

"Yes. I know." Itachi bowed his head. "I…"

Danzou frowned, but inside he was triumphant. Itachi had just admitted the coup was real. As expected, he had the boy eating out of his hand. He began to think that perhaps it would be easier to dig into Itachi's head than he first suspected.

"I was going to take care of it myself without involving anyone else." Itachi's words were stated with conviction as he raised his head and looked Danzou in the eye.

"By yourself? What are you planning on doing?" Danzou was a little surprised. He knew Itachi tended to internalize, but this was going a bit far.

"Taking out the leaders and putting myself in their place. Then I order the rest to stand down." Itachi was taken aback when Danzou started laughing. It was something he had never seen him do before. The sound was a little creepy, as if an old door with rusty hinges that hadn't been used in decades was suddenly opened.

"Itachi, Itachi, Itachi. You never cease to amaze me. I guess for a second there I forgot you were only twelve years old." Danzou stopped laughing and smiled condescendingly at the boy in front of him.

"Nevertheless, that is what I am going to do. This is a clan issue and as its heir it is my duty to keep it on track." Itachi was not amused at Danzou's mirth, and his declaration was edged with anger. "I know for a fact that none of your ANBU is a match for us."

"True. I can't argue you there. Well, good luck, Itachi. I really don't see how such a ploy would work. If you die then who would take your place?"

"If we sat around worrying about whether we will die or not then all we will become is nothing more than dried up old men who sit behind desks all day afraid to stick our necks out." Itachi's sarcasm was not lost on Danzou, but he refused to react. Instead he continued to show a small smile.

"Keep me updated, Itachi. The village is our first priority. Tens of thousands of lives depend on us everyday."

Itachi stood up and walked to the door. He had enough of this conversation and didn't like having his plans questioned by an outsider. "I realize that. And I will protect them with my life."

As he reached for the door Danzou spoke again, in a cheerful voice, "Give my regards to Aya when you see her next. And your mother is quite a kunoichi, is she not?"

Itachi dropped his hand back to his side as his heart dropped down into his stomach. "You know."

Danzou smirked, then became serious. "Who are her next targets? And, Itachi, no more lies."

His voice was little more than a whisper, "There are no more. They got them all."

Danzou dropped his voice, and when he spoke it was filled with sorrow, "Itachi, their blood is on your hands. You knew and yet you did not warn me. I could have protected them. I realize we are talking about your fiancé's sister and your mother, but remember what I have taught you about personal bonds. They do not get in the way of being ROOT, because if they do it will weaken you. Make you unable to protect Konoha. In ROOT we exist to protect Konoha. In ROOT, you have no name, no past, no future. If you are going against that you cannot protect Konoha."

"I realize that." Itachi said, still whispering as he slowly slid open the door and left the room.

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"Kakashi. You sure spend a lot of time here." Itachi greeted the silver-haired jounin as he approached the memorial stone. The man was sitting cross-legged on the ground.

"Yeah." He paused and looked up at Itachi, smiling, "Your voice has changed. A little early, huh?"

Itachi sighed in frustration. "Really? I hadn't noticed. It's a good thing half the village keeps telling me or I'd never figure it out."

"Ha! You're a comedian too. It's okay, when people get used to it they'll stop saying things to you about it."

"Most everyone has, it's just a few stragglers now. So how is Obito today?" Itachi changed the subject.

Kakashi looked back to the stone. "I wish I knew. He doesn't talk much. Are you here to see Yota?"

"I was just walking and ended up here." Itachi said truthfully.

"Yota was a brave young man, Itachi. Maybe you were drawn here subconsciously." Kakashi offered.

Itachi frowned and shook his head. "Kakashi, the truth is that Yota hated Konoha with every fiber of his being. He wanted nothing more than to see it destroyed."

Kakashi looked up at Itachi in shock. "You can't be serious!"

"His family was abused badly by the Hyuuga and he blamed Konoha for it. It was a good thing he died back then." Itachi was silent for a minute. "I don't really know why I felt like telling you that. But I guess… it bothers me to hear him called a hero just because he was a ninja in service to Konoha and died."

"I see your point." Kakashi leaned back on his hands and looked up at the sky. "I love it here so much, I can't imagine anyone hating it. Even with the bad treatment my father received that drove him to suicide, I still can't bring myself to hate it here."

Itachi sat down on the ground a couple feet from Kakashi. "Me too. I don't want to see anyone get hurt."

They were silent for a while, both lost in their own thoughts. Kakashi wondered why Itachi was being so talkative. He did tend to seek him out though, when he had things on his mind. And today it was obvious that something big was eating him up. However, the boy never opened up to him. He would usually just show up, make small talk, then leave.

"They want me to become a sensei." Kakashi finally broke the silence.

"Hmm. Well, I think you should be Sasuke's sensei." Itachi grinned.

"That boys a handful. I'll pass." Kakashi laughed. "I walked by the park the other day and he and Naruto were having a 'my dad is better than your dad' argument. The Fourth being compared to the head of the most powerful clan in Konoha."

"Who won?" Itachi was amused. He already knew that the two boys fought a lot. Naruto wanted to be powerful and decided that constantly challenging the smartest boy in his class was the best way to do it. Of course, Sasuke never backed down from a fight and would accept all of Naruto's challenges. His little brother always won, but after watching one fight a few months ago he had to admit that it wasn't so much that Sasuke was a good fighter as it was that Naruto, who was last in all his Academy subjects, was very bad. It was a shame, really, considering who his parents were. Itachi wondered at the time if perhaps the young blond was a late-bloomer, or the Kyuubi inside of him was affecting his growth somehow. By all rights, Naruto and Sasuke should be closer in their abilities, especially since Sasuke had not yet attained his Sharingan.

"Neither. Iruka-sensai was also passing by and told both boys to break it up and go home. They parted ways pouting." Kakashi laughed again.

"Then I think you should get both Sasuke and Naruto. It'll keep you on your toes." Itachi teased.

Kakashi shook his head, "It'll lead to an early grave. Mine or theirs, take your pick."

"Oh, I get to choose?" Itachi smirked.

Kakashi laughed, "You're in an interesting mood today, Itachi."

"Yeah. Maybe. I have a lot to think about." He looked back at the memorial. "Obito was only a year older than I am now when he died. It's hard to imagine him my age. When I was younger… he seemed so grown up to me. But now that I'm his age… he doesn't seem all that grown up at all."

Kakashi looked at Itachi. He remembered the memorial service, so many years ago. Itachi was four-years-old and very small. He remembered how easily the boy had fit in his mother's arms, how he had jumped down to the ground to give Rin a hug. Later she had told him how cute she thought the boy was, but she found him uncharacteristically solemn and serious. Even when she had seen him playing with Obito and Shisui, muddy from the spring rains that had dampened the earth, he had seemed "different" from the other two boys. When Kakashi had pressed her for a definition of "different" she had been unable to explain. It was just a feeling she had. He wondered what she would say about him now, if… she was still alive.

Kakashi hadn't understood what Rin saw. He saw Itachi over the years around the village and in the Uchiha compound when he would visit Obito's parents, and later, Fugaku. The boy was serious on missions or when training, but seemed to relax around his friends. He wasn't like his cousin Shisui, and certainly not like Obito, but… 'He has been through a lot.' Kakashi thought to himself, 'Like me, he has lost his sensei, teammates and friends. But he was younger than I was when all this happened. He is mature enough to be a ninja, but as a human being, is he mature enough to deal with the loss?'

Something was definitely eating at the boy. The older jounin watched as Itachi held his body rigid, hands clenched into fists. His emotionless face stared straight at the memorial as if daring the dead to show themselves. He was so different from the young child Kakashi had met that day, so long ago.

'He looks almost like an old man.' Kakashi thought to himself.

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"Where is Sasuke?" Itachi asked as he entered the kitchen. Usually, if Fugaku was going to be late she would feed Sasuke his dinner as soon as he returned from school. He had spied his little brother at his usual after-school location, throwing kunai at defenseless targets in the Academy's practice grounds. That was three hours ago, which meant he should be sitting at the table eating right now.

"I have a mission so I'll be leaving town for a few days. Auntie is looking after him during that time. You and Fugaku are too busy and he's much more of a handful than you were at that age." Mikoto was dressed in black pants and a black short sleeve shirt. Her hair was pulled up in a bun on her head. "Although, if I remember right, Fugaku had to use an alarm clock to remind you to eat when he was at work." She laughed. "No one has to remind Sasuke when to eat."

"Will you be back by the end of the month?" Itachi gave his mother a small smile.

"Yes, definitely. Rumiko is having her baby then and I won't miss it for the world. I should only be gone three or four days. It's too bad you missed her wedding. It was a huge party."

"It was unfortunate." Itachi remembered he had been with Akatsuki during that time.

"Just make sure you don't miss your own wedding, Itachi. That would be very unfortunate." Mikoto smiled at her son.

"What is your mission?" Itachi changed the subject.

Mikoto finished putting the glasses in the cupboard and closed it. "I have some assassinations in the capital to take care of."

Itachi was struck with the carefree attitude she had toward the people she was about to kill. He remembered Danzou's words about how the blood of the past targets was on his hands. How many people had died so far? How many were going to die in the future? The coup hadn't even started yet and already the streets were running red with blood.

'Even if I get the names now there is no way I could warn the targets before mother could kill them.' Itachi realized.

"Short notice." The boy commented.

"Tell me about it. Sometimes I just don't understand how your father's mind works. Well, I better get going. I'll see you soon." She left the kitchen and a couple minutes later he heard her leave the house.

Itachi sat down at the table and buried his head in his arms. How long was he supposed to wait before attacking his father? Or for that matter, how would he know when he was strong enough to do so? He would have to use his Mangekyou Sharingan but he would need something more powerful that Tsukiyomi. Madara had hinted at other powers.

He lifted his head off the table. The secret scrolls of the Uchiha clan were kept at the Hideout. That would be the first place to look. Somewhere in the old volumes must be a description of the eye-jutsu's powers. But then again, Madara also said he might be able to make his own jutsus.

"That could take years to develop, though." Itachi put his head back down on the table. He didn't have time right now to go to the Hideout anyway. He was on call with ANBU and had to stay nearby for missions.

"I wonder…" Itachi suddenly sat back up again, then jumped up from the table and ran down the hall to his parent's room. His father might have brought the scrolls to the house so he could read them himself. If that was so then they would be in the one of the many secret compartments located inside the house.

Entering his parent's room he made his way to the wall next to the wardrobe. After forming several seals with his hands he placed his palms flat on the smooth wall. It glowed for a second then disappeared. Smiling he reached in a pulled out the four scrolls he saw laying inside. Looking them over, though, revealed nothing useful. He put them back and re-sealed the wall. Only ten more secret compartments to look through.

An hour later found Itachi laying on his bed staring at the ceiling. He hadn't found anything. Well, he did find his father's collection of erotic prints, but that didn't really occupy him for very long either. Most of the pictures were kind of gross and he had stuck them back where he found them.

"Am I really looking for something to help me or am I just bored?" Itachi spoke to the ceiling. Danzou's laughter had shaken his resolve. He had spent the day wandering around, thinking, worrying, and wondering if he had been acting like a child instead of an adult. He thought he had a good plan, he felt it had a chance of working, but the mechanics of pulling it off eluded him. "Maybe Danzou's right."

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"Itachi is against the coup, then." Sarutobi sat back in his chair and stared across his desk at Danzou.

"Yes. He is, in fact, planning his own little coup. He believes that in killing his father he will be able to place himself in command and order the others to '_stand down_', as he put it." Danzou stood calmly in the Hokage's office, both hands resting firmly on the cane in front of him.

"This is my fault. I knew they were treated poorly, yet I did little to help." The Third closed his eyes and sighed.

"It is not." Danzou said firmly. "It is their fault. That arrogant clan should never have been allowed into Konoha. This isn't the first time something like this has happened, however, it is the largest, most organized effort. And this time the whole clan is supporting it."

Sarutobi spoke firmly, "The whole clan does _not_ support it. The clan leader supports it, meaning no one is going to openly disagree with him. Especially when that man is Fugaku. He demands complete loyalty and punishes those who do not give it. Itachi's plan has merit, Danzou. With the boy as clan leader instead of Fugaku I do believe the villagers might back off some. He is already on my short list of candidates for Fifth Hokage."

Danzou pursed his lips in anger. "I would hardly consider the boy suitable for clan leader or Hokage."

"Your hatred of the Uchiha is noted, Danzou. It is also unwarranted."

"Unwarranted?" Danzou said, disbelief and anger rising in his voice, "You dare call my concern about a coup to murder you and thousands of villagers _and_ take control of the government '_unwarranted'_?"

"I will speak with Fugaku and seek a peaceful resolution to this crisis. You may leave." Sarutobi watched as Danzou pivoted around and left the office.

The Hokage's thoughts turned to seven years ago when the Kyuubi had attacked Konoha. It was a confusing night, full of death. The Uchiha clan, though, had risked their lives to protect the village with Fugaku at the forefront. He had been the last person to speak to the Fourth. Yet they were never thanked for their sacrifice and endured years of accusations and hatred from people who believed they had caused the disaster.

"When my people stumble, it is I who fall." Sarutobi turned his chair around to look out at the village. In the distance he could see the Uchiha clan compound. Isolated and alone, from the height of the Hokage tower it looked almost like a separate village. "I have made many, many mistakes, Fugaku, but hopefully I can keep you from making an even bigger one."

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"Humph. Itachi usually isn't this careless." Fugaku was re-sorting his prints. They were antique wood block prints of erotica from five-hundred years ago. They were out of order and it was pretty obvious to the father of a teenage boy that said teenager had been the one to find them. He gave a short laugh. He was probably looking for something else. Well, the hidden compartments were never a secret to the curious boy anyway and Fugaku had learned a long time ago not to keep anything truly secret in them. He had only put them in the compartment because they were antiques and very valuable, not to keep them "secret".

"Father, there is a man from the Hokage's office to see you." Itachi stuck his head in the library. He quickly noted the prints that his father was sorting.

Fugaku smirked, "Next time, put them back in their proper order." He put the prints and scrolls back in the compartment and sealed it, then walked out of the room.

Itachi continued to stand in the doorway, staring at the now empty wall. "They were out of order?" He wondered who had been in the compartment before him. He smiled when he thought of Sasuke playing a game of "open the hidden compartment" and finding something he hadn't expected.

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Fugaku walked into the Hokage's office without knocking and sat down in a chair in front of the large desk. It was late evening and the room was lit with only one lamp, set on the edge of the desk.

Sarutobi gazed intently at the clan leader, "Glad you could make it."

"What is this about, Sarutobi?" He didn't bother to use the man's title.

"Well, let's get down to business then." Sarutobi steepled his fingers and leaned forward on his desk. "What can I do to make Uchiha happy again?"

Fugaku didn't attempt to hide his sarcasm, "Do you have twelve hours?"

"I have forty-eight hours if that's what it'll take." Sarutobi spoke calmly and continued to look Fugaku in the eye.

Fugaku stood up, prepared to leave.

"Sit down, Fugaku." Sarutobi's angry voice echoed in the room. "I didn't call you here to be patronizing or misleading. I am serious this time."

Standing with his back to the Hokage Fugaku snorted, "I have heard that one too many times from you, Sarutobi. Each time you are '_serious'_, yet each time Uchiha finds itself pulled back further and further. Now, we are confined to the compound with twenty-four hour ANBU watching our every move. _You_ have placed _me_ in a _very_ bad position."

The Third looked up the Fugaku's back. It seemed as if he had just admitted he was planning a coup.

"Fugaku, sit down. We are both in a bad position right now and we both need to talk."

Fugaku sighed and sat back down. "I'm listening."

Sarutobi smiled, "The first thing we have to do is develop some measure of trust between us. The Second Hokage placed Uchiha in charge of the police-station to keep an eye on them, that much we both know. Yet, despite that the Uchiha have consistently protected Konoha during war and peace. There has never been a time when a request for back-up was refused. That dedication was rewarded by allowing the clan to keep control of their authority. Can you deny this?"

"No." Fugaku was wondering what the Third was getting at. He had always endeavored to protect the village from criminals and had spent many sleepless nights investigating crimes. He had never considered his work a "privilege" but an "obligation" he paid to protect his home. He even enjoyed it.

"The station is the last thing we can remove from your control."

"Are you here to talk or threaten?" Fugaku was beginning to feel like he was being baited.

"Talk." Sarutobi continued to hold Fugaku's gaze. "I will use your excellent record of support to convince the council to back off on the ANBU guards, then we can work on getting the clan's forced residency in the compound rescinded."

"The council? You mean Danzou's cronies Homura and Koharu? I realize you personally do not hate us, Sarutobi, but they do. Vehemently." Fugaku's tone lightened slightly.

"Nevertheless, I was wrong to let them take control of this situation and I plan on doing everything I can to back them down."

Fugaku crossed his arms across his chest. "It will have to be a major concession your part, a real and lasting show of trust."

"I realize that. I promise you Fugaku, I will resolve this." Sarutobi stood up and walked around the desk. His long white robe brushed across the ground as he made his way over to Fugaku.

Standing up, Fugaku looked down at the Hokage. "For what its worth, Sarutobi, I hope it can be resolved. We have shown patience for over eighty years and it is getting difficult…" He let his words trail off as he looked out the window and sighed. Due of the low light in the room there were few reflections in the glass and he could see the village spread out below them. A peaceful scene full of sleepy citizens preparing for bed. Even as he watched he could see a couple lights blink off.

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Danzou slammed his hand down on his desk in anger. "How dare he!"

The old man had a listening device placed surreptitiously in the Hokage's office and had listened in on the whole conversation. He was not pleased. If Sarutobi and Fugaku reached a mutually acceptable agreement his own plans would go up in smoke.

"That man's weakness sickens me. I can't believe the First and Second chose him over me. The village has been put into danger so many times since he put on his robes. It is nothing short of disgraceful." Danzou banged his hand down on his desk again exhaled loudly to calm himself.

"I will be walking a fine line for a while, but no matter what, I will see to the extermination of that cursed clan." Danzou paused and smiled, "And Itachi will help me."

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**Next week: Itachi returns to the hideout to search for information about the Mangekyou Sharingan and Sheeta runs into some trouble.**

**Kakashi!!!!! Okay – everyone repeat: "Plot no Jutsu, Kakashi revival technique!" **

**Konohamaru has me worried too, I like the kid xD He's kind of like a less annoying, slightly smarter version of Naruto (if that makes any sense… he and Naruto are like brothers and I think that's cute since Naruto seems to enjoy playing "big brother", it suits him somehow). **

**Please review! **


	56. Chapter 56 Back to the Hideout

**Last week Itachi finally revealed his plan to Danzou about stopping the coup, and Fugaku and Sarutobi begin discussions to appease the Uchiha.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and fav's! **

**Q & A time!**

**Naruto does know who his father is… but he doesn't brag about it because it looks to me like he wants to be known for who he is and not for who he is related to. I believe the reason Konohamaru was introduced in the first few episodes was to symbolize Naruto as he would have been if Minato survived. Remember, K. hated being known as "honorable grandson" because he wanted people to know him for himself. At first I thought "Uzumaki" was his name to protect him from people who might be after "Namikaze", but now I wonder if it was Naruto's idea to keep people from comparing him to his father. Anyway, it doesn't matter because the manga will eventually explain everything so we'll find out for sure…someday xD (I also have this insane idea that won't leave my brain – Tsunade and Dan are Minato's parents… it sounds absurd, but it won't go away! Especially after Jiraiya said he thought of Minato as his son and Tsunade looked down and smiled, like she was proud to hear him compliment her son… arghhhh!)**

**LOL – Kakashi did say his team would be the death of him o.O I had completely forgotten about that. It was in the land of Waves during the tree climbing training. Naruto pretended to fall, then really did fall (Sasuke caught him).**

**And finally, Fugaku's attitude is changing somewhat in the way he handles Itachi, but that will be explained later.**

**Sorry for the long author's notes… I'll let you read the story now xD**

**Disclaimer: oturaN snwo otomihsiK**

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**Chapter 56 – Back to the Hideout**

Sheeta grabbed Itachi's hand and pulled him into Rumiko's living room. "They are so cute! You have to see them, Itachi. Oh! I hope I have twins one day!"

Itachi let her pull him into the medium-sized room and toward two small, white bassinets. The sun was shining into the room, creating rectangles of yellow on the polished wood floor. To the left of the bassinets Rumiko was sitting, half-asleep, in a rocking chair.

"Hello, Itachi. I haven't seen you in forever." Rumiko smiled as she woke up.

"Hello Rumiko. Are you feeling better?" Itachi looked closely at the woman and saw her pale skin, sunken eyes and she was trembling slightly. His mother had told him that Rumiko had gone through the same treatment she had when Sasuke was born. Unfortunately she had developed an infection the day after her babies were born and was not responding well to the medication. However, she refused to stay in the hospital.

"Believe it or not, I am. I know I still look like shit, though." She gave a half-hearted laugh. "Sheeta has been a God-send though."

"I've been staying here for the last week to take care of the babies while Rumiko recovers." Sheeta explained. "I'm glad you finally have some time off. You must have really pissed someone off to get all those missions."

Itachi smirked. He had pissed someone off. Danzou had taken it out on him by sending him out on back-to-back missions for the last four weeks. All of which he successfully fulfilled. Now, he had some time off and the first person he thought of spending it with was Sheeta.

"This is the oldest." Sheeta lifted the small, black haired bundle out of his bassinet and placed him gently in Itachi's arms. The baby opened his eyes and glanced in Itachi's direction. "I think he likes you, he's a bit loud usually when strangers hold him."

"What's his name?" Itachi asked quietly. The little bundle was warm and moving slightly. It felt good to hold something alive in his arms and he smiled, remembering that he had thought the same thing when he had kissed Sheeta on his birthday.

Rumiko spoke softly, "The oldest is Arata, and the youngest is Yori."

Sheeta picked up Yori and stood next to Itachi. "I wish Aya would hurry up and get back. She's going to miss them being babies. That's the best time."

Rumiko laughed, "Only a twelve-year-old would say that."

"Ahh! I know you think the same way, Rumiko." Sheeta laughed back.

"True. Now that I'm a mother, I can understand why my own mother was so upset when I became a Genin. The thought of them going off to battle scares me. I kind of wish they would stay innocent little babies forever." She gave her two friends a wistful smile.

Itachi looked down at Arata. He remembered Kisa had felt the same way and even tried to keep Shisui away from missions. The baby was waving his arms around, but was silent. His face was scrunched up and he kept opening and closing his mouth. Itachi had to admit that he wanted to protect his little brother from the horrors he had seen and experienced as well. Four years ago their father had used that knowledge to force Itachi's Sharingan to appear by threatening to kill him and make Sasuke his heir.

"Rumiko! Take our picture!" Sheeta grabbed a camera out of her pocket and handed it to her friend.

"Okay!" Rumiko perked up, especially when she saw the look of shock on Itachi's face. "Stand against that wall over there so the sun won't mess up the picture."

Itachi and Sheeta, still carrying the babies, walked to the other side of the room and stood against a bare, pale blue wall. Sheeta stood against Itachi's shoulder and they both held the babies up and smiled as Rumiko snapped a couple pictures.

"That was very cute!" Toshiro was standing in the doorway next to Fugaku. Both were smiling. Itachi felt his face turning red.

"Don't tease, Toshiro! Sheeta's been trying very hard to get Itachi down here and now you're going to scare him away." Rumiko chastised the smiling man.

Itachi walked over to the bassinet and gently placed Arata back inside. The baby closed his eyes. Sheeta was still cooing over Yori.

"I wish we were older, then we could have cute little babies too, Itachi!" Sheeta said happily.

Itachi smiled, thoughts of himself and Sheeta with two boys living happily ever after drifting through his head. But his smile faded quickly when the girl turned her back to speak to Rumiko. He knew it would never happen. Fugaku caught his eye and surprisingly Itachi saw regret on his face. Itachi quickly made his excuses and left the house.

Sitting beside the lake he was shocked when his father joined him a few minutes later. Itachi rarely spoke to Fugaku unless it was absolutely necessary. Fugaku, on the other hand, continued to try to talk to him. Often it turned into a one-sided conversation with Itachi remaining silent.

"I spoke with Dr. Yakushi." Fugaku said hesitantly. "He…"

"I know." Itachi interrupted. "There's nothing more to say."

"There is, Itachi. He said he might be able to cure what you have, or at least hold it off until you are in your forties or fifties. Don't use Fumitake as an example. By the time he got treatment his lungs were so damaged it was irreversible."

Itachi sighed in irritation. "You forget my goal is Madara. Do you really think I will be coming back from that fight?"

Fugaku was silent for a few minutes before speaking again, "What do I need to do to increase your chances?"

"I am going to the Hideout to look through the scrolls. There has to be something there." More silence. The lake gently lapped against the shore, creating an almost hypnotic atmosphere.

"Father, don't let anyone else know." Itachi stood up with his back to Fugaku.

"What about Sheeta?"

"Let her have her pretty dreams for now." Itachi started walking away, "I'm going to pack and leave immediately."

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The Hideout was occupied by about fifteen Uchiha shinobi who were assigned there for training. They greeted the boy enthusiastically, but were a little disappointed to find out he was there to study and not to join their sparring.

Itachi located a small room near the library and moved in. It was bare with no furnishings so he ransacked the base for a bed, mattress, table, bookcase and a portable heater. He also found some cushions to sit on. Luckily the room was wired with electricity and had overhead lights, but he still grabbed a table lamp for reading and a kerosene lamp for emergencies.

The ceiling was very high, and there were no windows. Itachi wondered if it had been a jail cell when he found carvings in the cement wall one evening. It reminded him of the old movies with the tick marks crossed out marking forty-three days. Luckily it did have a separate, very small bathroom with a toilet, tiny sink and a shower that was so small and cramped that even he had trouble moving around in it.

The Hideout was a large stone and concrete fortress and very cold. The wet October weather didn't make things any better. Warm dress was required when walking the hallways or rooms outside of the living areas. Every morning Itachi would eat breakfast with his kinsmen (more for the convenience of not having to cook than for socializing) then refill his can of heating oil and carry it back to his room. Setting up the heater and keeping it running was important in the massive structure.

The scroll room was very different from the rest of the fortress. It was a modern, climate-controlled room sealed with an advanced jutsu. The woman in charge of watching over the room, Harue, was very strict about who went in and what came out. She would only allow Itachi to remove three scrolls at a time and if he wanted more he had to return them. She had also been sworn to secrecy concerning anything Itachi removed or looked at.

Itachi spent his days browsing through the library, looking for old scrolls on anything related to old Uchiha training methods, Mangekyou Sharingan, or Madara himself. There actually wasn't a lot and most evenings were spent in frustration, staring at the ceiling of his small room wondering where the documents he searched for resided.

After about two weeks of fruitless searching Itachi was about ready to give up. He walked into the library and stared at the rows of scroll and book covered shelves. "Is this all there is?" Itachi asked in frustration. He didn't really believe there were more scrolls; he was just tired of wasting his time.

Harue smiled, "Maybe, maybe not."

"Very funny." Itachi said sarcastically.

"There is an old story that Madara himself, when he lived here before Konoha was founded, had his own private library in his quarters. In the past people have tried to find it, but none have succeeded." Harue laughed, "It's probably just a ghost story to get people to run around in circles."

Itachi was instantly hooked. "Where were his private quarters?"

"No one knows. There are no old maps of this place either. The earliest map was fifty years ago and we have no more elders old enough to remember living here. And even when we did they said they didn't know the answer either. Most people start looking around the throne room, thinking that there's a room there hidden by a seal of some kind."

"Hmm." Itachi was silent for a few minutes. It was probably worth spending a few days searching. It couldn't be any bigger of a waste of time than looking through the library had already turned into.

"You going to look for it?" The librarian raised her eyebrows, surprised by Itachi's silence.

"Yeah. I think I will." Itachi smiled and turned around, preparing to walk away.

"If it exists, you are probably the only one who could find it, Itachi. Good luck. If you need any help ask for it. It's one of the biggest mysteries of this boring old fortress."

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The throne room was just as he remembered it. A wide staircase that lead to a dais on which rested a large stone chair. He remembered back to when he was four and Madara had brought him to this room to meet his "inner council". It had been full of people that night, all Uchihas loyal to Madara. Including Kentaro and Kagura.

Itachi walked over to where Kagura had sat that night and knelt down to touch the floor. He still had vivid memories of her. She was boisterous like her son Obito, and loved to help people. A skilled medic she had also taken Rin on as an apprentice. His mother had missed her tremendously after she died. Even though she had kidnapped Sasuke, Mikoto eventually forgave her, realizing her friend had been badly used and manipulated.

Standing up he walked over to where Kentaro had sat. The man who had acted as his father's guardian when he was a child as well as his closest advisor. He was driven then just as Fugaku was now. Itachi had only pleasant memories of the old man, never having seen his darker side. However, after learning the truth he no longer liked him. He would have been the man to take Sasuke away from him forever and seal the Kyuubi in the baby. Itachi couldn't forgive him for that.

Finally he made his way to the throne. Supposedly only Madara was supposed to sit there. Itachi frowned and sat down anyway. So much for that superstition. He drew his legs up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. Resting his chin on his knees, he looked around the room for the place he considered the best spot to hide the entrance to a hidden chamber.

Madara was an arrogant man who liked to play games with people's minds, so likely the location would be obvious but hard to open. It could even turn deadly if it was opened incorrectly.

"Lord Itachi? Would you like to join us for lunch? Harue said you were in here…" One of the clansmen walked into the room, then stopped short. "I'm sorry, but even you aren't allowed to sit there, my Lord."

Itachi suddenly got a burst of inspiration. "Have you ever searched for Madara's hidden chambers?"

"Yes, of course. Twenty years ago when I was a teenager I came here with three others and we spent a couple weeks one summer looking all over this room. Didn't find a thing." He looked around, as if remembering better times.

"Did you ever look around the throne?"

"Nope. Never. Even though we were kids we were deathly afraid of violating the founder's thrown." He was adamant in his words and gave Itachi a look that clearly told him to move or else doom would somehow befall him.

Itachi put his legs down, stood up and declared, "I know where the chambers are. I think I'll skip lunch today." He turned around and faced the throne.

"Suit yourself." He didn't believe Itachi and just walked away shaking his head.

Itachi ignored him and started walking around it, looking at the base. If there was something underneath it then maybe there was a crack. Getting down on the floor he pulled a small flashlight out of his belt pouch and shined it on the floor. When he got to the back he found a crack that wasn't filled with sediment. It was deep and black.

Pulling out a piece of scrap paper from his pocket he unfolded it and started pushing it into the crack. The whole nine-inch piece of paper disappeared and dropped from his grip. The crack itself was exactly at the base of the chair, but it was only four feet long and did not branch off to form a square around the chair or behind it. It was just a straight line.

"Unless it goes under the chair. Perhaps a hidden staircase that is smaller than the throne." Itachi stood up and looked at the plain back of the throne. A perfect place to put a seal.

First he would have to find out if there was a seal on the stone. Forming hand-signs for a jutsu he placed his palms on the throne and watched as a complicated pattern revealed itself. It was the shape of the Kyuubi with nine tales fanned out behind it. Underneath the Kyuubi were six circles, two with three tomoes inside, two with a second circle that had three additional circles drawn on top of it, and the last two contained the pattern from the two middle circles plus a black cross.

"I found it." Itachi gave a short laugh. The circles were representations of Madara's three Sharingan forms: the basic, Mangekyou and Eternal.

Itachi listened to hear if anyone was coming down the hall, then activated his own Mangekyou Sharingan. Looking at the throne back again he didn't see anything new so he shut it off.

"How am I going to open it?" Itachi frowned as he looked at it. He formed hand-signs again to show the seal. This time he moved his head closer and noticed something odd about the tails. Looking even closer he saw that the Kanji for a hand sign was written where the tip of the tail should be. It was very small. Each tail had a different hand sign. He quickly memorized the nine signs and stood back.

Taking a deep breath he raised his hands and quickly formed the signs, then gasped as the whole throne started to glow red. Nine fiery tails rose from the back as it silently moved forward revealing the suspected staircase. As soon as the throne stopped moving it stopped glowing and the tails disappeared.

"Well, that was a bit showy. Madara sure has weird taste." Itachi said quietly. He heard talking coming from the open door and waited a minute as it drew closer.

"We brought you some riceballs and water, Lord Itachi. Where would you like me to put them…" The four men stood rooted to the spot as their eyes opened wide in shock.

"I found it." Itachi declared with a big smile on his face.

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Sheeta woke suddenly and lay still on her futon. She was lying on the floor in the baby's room. It was her third week in Rumiko's house and she still wasn't familiar with all different sounds that came with sleeping in a new place. It sounded like something heavy had fallen to the floor.

Looking at the alarm clock she saw it was still early morning. Umihiko should have returned from his late shift at the police station a couple hours ago. She started to drift off when she heard the sound again. This time she shot up and ran to the door, throwing it open.

"Rumiko? Are you alright?" Sheeta ran the short distance down the hall to the bedroom. What if Umihiko wasn't home yet and Rumiko had fallen out of bed or collapsed on the way to the bathroom? She knocked on the door but no one answered.

Sheeta yelled, "I'm coming in!" and opened the door.

The first thing she saw was two bodies laid out on the floor side by side and three ANBU with their white animal-shaped masks bending over them. They looked up at her and one of them signaled for his companion to attack.

Activating her Sharingan Sheeta screamed as loud as she could. The babies woke up and almost immediately started crying. The noise was deafening to the three ANBU.

"We should leave." One of them said hurriedly.

"Not until we kill the girl and babies. Our orders were clear."

The single ANBU attacked and Sheeta continued screaming as she kicked. Someone was bound to hear the noise and come. Especially at this time of the night.

The man moved his hands quickly to form a jutsu but Sheeta used her cloaking jutsu to disappear and run behind him. She kicked him behind the knees and when he dropped she kicked the base of his neck, immobilizing him. He fell to the ground, unable to move.

The second ANBU ran up to her. She did a transportation jutsu to move away and grabbed a kunai she saw laying on the dresser. She cloaked herself again and ducked just as the ANBU was reaching out to grab her. Pivoting on her right heal she turned around and sliced through the man's spine as she completed her pivot.

The last ANBU growled at her, "Very good, Sheeta. We had no idea you were this skilled in close combat."

She answered him angrily, "It's my specialty. It works even better in a closed, small space like this because I'm smaller than you."

"You may be smaller, but too bad you're not smarter." The ANBU laughed as he watched his clone walk up behind Sheeta, then reach around bury a kunai in her abdomen.

Sheeta's eyes went wide and blood started leaking out of her mouth. The Clone disappeared as the real ANBU walked up to her. She stood still, holding her own kunai close to her chest. When the ANBU was a foot away from her she suddenly reversed the kunai and stabbed directly into the man's heart. As he fell to the ground she fell on top of him.

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"The babies are okay!" A woman's voice could be heard from down the hall.

Sheeta opened her eyes and watched as several people ran into the bedroom. She couldn't tell how many. They quietly walked around the various bodies and she finally recognized Fugaku.

"Sheeta! It's okay Sheeta. I'll get you to the hospital." Fugaku picked her up in his arms. He looked around and handed her to another man who cradled her close to his chest and kissed her on the forehead.

"Toshi…ro." Sheeta managed to mutter through the blood in her throat. "Why…"

"Don't talk, sweetheart. It'll be okay." Toshiro watched as she closed her eyes, then ran out of the house.

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Fugaku was not a happy man. And that was still understating things. The babies had been removed from the house by Mikoto and taken to their grandparents. The two dead ANBU were dragged out of the house and beheaded. The living ANBU was taken to the stable for transport to the Hideout for interrogation. All that remained now were the newlyweds. The new parents who didn't even make it through their children's first month of life.

Fugaku growled as he clenched his fist and hit the wall. The hard wood split and his hand started bleeding, but he didn't flinch. Rumiko was immensely popular in the clan. Friendly and gregarious everyone liked her. She was also very powerful, almost comparable to Mikoto. However she was still ill from an infection and vulnerable. Her husband, it appeared, had been drugged. He had a large bruise on his arm with a bloody hole in the center. Obviously a senbon had struck him. Neither stood a chance.

Sheeta, however, had taken down all three ANBU. Fugaku wondered if she was really that skilled or if she had a burst of adrenalin that had given her extra strength. He finally decided it had been a combination of both. The girl was basically untested, having only gone on simple missions. He wanted to protect her, keep her safe so she could grow up. The clan needed its children.

Toshiro walked into the bedroom, his face was red and his eyes swollen. "She's in intensive care. They don't know if…" His voice cracked and he turned away.

"Toshiro…" Fugaku said quietly.

"I can't loose another one… First Obito, then my nephews, then Shisui, and lord knows where Aya is, and…" The man dropped to his knees and rested his head on the wall.

Fugaku was at a loss to know what to do. He was responsible for Shisui and Aya, and the guilt he felt was suddenly overwhelming. He took a deep breath and looked back at the two young adults lying on the floor.

Toshiro finally spoke, "Itachi… if he looses her… what will he do? Who would he marry?"

"Itachi isn't getting married." Fugaku said quietly.

Toshiro turned around and faced his old friend.

"He has… the disease. Don't let him know I told you. Although, it will be hard to hide in a few years, right now he doesn't want anyone to know."

"I'm sorry." Toshiro replied so quietly Fugaku almost didn't hear it.

"Me too. We are loosing our future, Toshiro. If they came here to kill Rumiko and Umihiko, were they after the babies too? I will have to place guards around them and Sasuke."

"Can you send them to the Hideout?" Toshiro picked himself up off the floor and sat on the bed. He rubbed his face to wipe the tears away.

"I would like to, but right now it would be a bad idea. I have been speaking with the Hokage and it could be seen as a hostile act if I evacuate the young and weak."

Toshiro yelled, "And what they did tonight isn't a hostile act!"

Fugaku sat down next to his friend, "It is, most definitely. In a few minutes the Hokage will be in his office and I will be delivering two heads to him. The problem, Toshiro, is that Danzou is involved. I don't think Sarutobi has as much control over that man as he thinks he does. I'll bet you a million ryou that Sarutobi wasn't told about the attack."

"Shit! So even if you talk with the Hokage it could be a complete waste of time." He was silent for a couple minutes. "I understand why you have to try though, Fugaku. I really do." He stood up and walked to the door. "I'm going back to the hospital. Has anyone been sent to inform Itachi?"

"I sent one of my cats to the Hideout a couple hours ago. He should get there soon. I'll come by the hospital after the meeting. If there are too many Uchiha in the lobby, send them home. We don't want to inundate the place."

"I understand." Toshiro left the room

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Fugaku slammed open the door the Hokage's office and strode in angrily. Sarutobi immediately stood up from his chair.

"What is the purpose of this intrusion, Fugaku?" He glared at the clan leader as he watched him walk up to the desk. The chakra emanating from the man was strong and would have intimidated a lesser man.

"I believe these belong to you." Fugaku upended the bag he was carrying and two bloody heads poured out onto the desk. He hadn't bothered to put them in plastic bags and the smell was horrendous. Blood splattered over the papers and file folders and onto Sarutobi's white robes.

"Explain." Sarutobi pulled out a couple bags from a lower drawer and proceeded to seal the heads in them.

"Rumiko and Umihiko were killed last night. We believe the ANBU were under orders to kill them and their newborn twins. Luckily Sheeta was there and took out the three ANBU that attacked. Sheeta is currently in the hospital hovering between life and death. Should my son's… _my heir's_ betrothed die I will take it out on you personally." Fugaku's words were laced with venom and Sarutobi kept an eye on him in case the man attacked. The clan leader had a violent temper and at this point Sarutobi wasn't sure he would remain calm.

The Third opened an empty jar and set it on the desk. He then formed a series of hand signs and the spilled blood shot up into the air and fell into the jar. Closing it he set it next to the heads.

"Where is the third ANBU?" Sarutobi asked calmly.

"Being taken elsewhere for interrogation."

"I would like a copy of the report when you are finished. I would also like his head returned as well."

Fugaku got the insinuation. Sarutobi had no idea the attack was planned, and he was handing out a death penalty to the surviving participant. "Done." He turned around to leave.

"Fugaku. I do not want this to get in the way of our discussions." Sarutobi called out to him.

Fugaku stopped walking halfway across the room. "This is Danzou's doing. But as long as you keep that man around, I fear our '_discussions'_ as you call them will continue to be undermined. When are you going to take that man seriously and quit messing around?" He walked out the door, slamming it behind him.

Sarutobi dropped into his chair and took a deep, ragged breath. There was something going on and if he didn't get to the bottom of it Konoha was going to end up in civil war. "Damn that Danzou!"

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The hospital lobby had several Uchiha's in it despite Fugaku's instructions. However, he couldn't bring himself to send them home when he saw their faces. He suspected that's why Toshiro hadn't either. Sorrow was rampant as they sat in uncomfortable chairs and waited.

Sheeta's foster parents were sitting in front of an altar at the far end of the waiting room, praying. Mikoto was sitting next to Kisa and Toshiro was pacing. About eight other Uchiha's were sitting attentively, waiting for information.

Nui finally came into the waiting room with Dr. Yakushi. She looked exhausted and when her parents ran over from the shrine and embraced her she broke out in tears. The other Uchiha's immediately grew worried, thinking that the worst had happened.

Dr. Yakushi stepped forward and raised his hand to get their attention. "Sheeta is fine. Nui is just overwrought, is all." He patted the teenager on the shoulder.

"Can we go see her?" Rihito and Emi said simultaneously.

"Yes, but just you two for right now. She is sedated and won't be able to speak until tomorrow. We had to remove her spleen, fix her large intestine and she lost a lot of blood. She will make a full recovery." He smiled and looked at Nui who had stopped crying and was wiping her face. "You should be proud of your daughter. She insisted on helping and was very calm and professional. A true healer."

Emi gave the doctor a hug, "Thank-you for saving her."

"Nui, show your parents to Sheeta's room." Dr. Yakushi patted the girl on the shoulder and smiled. She took her mother and father's hands and walked across the room to the corridor.

The doctor turned his attention to Fugaku, but waited until most of the other Uchiha's had left before speaking again. When it was just himself, Fugaku and Toshiro he lowered his voice, "Sheeta was conscious for a short time. She said they were going to kill the babies. I heard about the deaths last night. I'm very sorry. To be orphaned so young is unimaginable."

"That is why I ordered three clansmen to guard her hospital room." Toshiro spoke up.

"They are there right now. They were very professional and stayed out of the way while we treated her." He paused and looked at Fugaku. "I am worried about what Itachi will do when he hears about his. Very worried."

Fugaku opened his mouth to speak, then froze. "Dammit!"

Toshiro looked at him, puzzled.

"I sent a cat summons with a message to tell him." Fugaku hissed the words out, obviously regretting his previous decision.

"If he goes off the deep end, can you stop him?" Dr. Yakushi asked, keeping his voice quiet.

"With difficulty. He is becoming very powerful. Or I should say, 'easy' if a large amount of property damage is acceptable, and 'difficult' if it isn't." Fugaku formed some hand signs, bit his left thumb and slammed his hand on his right shoulder. A white cat with three large black spots on its body appeared, draped around the clan lord's neck.

"What do you want now, Fugaku?" The cat asked cheerfully.

"Itachi is at the Hideout and may be on his way back. Intercept him and tell him that Sheeta will make a full recovery and he is not to do anything before speaking with me first. We have caught the attackers and dealt with it already." Fugaku spoke hurriedly. The cat jumped down to the ground and ran out of the front door.

Fugaku returned his attention to the two men. "I told him in the earlier message that Sheeta was injured in an attack and in the hospital. I also mentioned that the surviving attacker was being delivered to the Hideout. He may stay there and take out his frustrations on that man."

Toshiro smiled. "I bet he stays. Did you tell him that she was the one who took out the three attackers?" He refrained from saying "ANBU" in front of the doctor, since he noticed that Fugaku was not using the word.

"Yeah. Couldn't leave that out." He smiled for the first time in hours, but it died on his lips. The children that would come from a union between Itachi and Sheeta would have been very powerful. There was no doubting that now. Unfortunately, it would never happen.

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**Next week Itachi learns about the attack and we get to see some good old fashioned torture as the Uchiha's try to find out who was behind the attack.**

**Please review! **


	57. Chapter 57 Setback

**Last week Itachi got to see Rumiko's twins, then went to the Hideout to consult the library for Mangekyou Sharingan techniques. He also found Madara's secret chamber. Meanwhile back in Konoha Rumiko and her husband are killed, while Sheeta is severely injured.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and fav's! More are always welcome!**

**I've got drafts written for the rest of the story – so there will be 65 chapters and an epilogue. The sequel will begin right after the epilogue. I have a lot of free time right now so I'm spending a lot of time writing. I even posted another story based on "Distraction" (a Sakura X Kakashi humor fic I wrote) if you are interested. **

**Disclaimer: oturaN snwo otomihsiK**

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**Chapter 57 – Setback**

A small grey-striped cat walked up to Itachi. It was the day after he had discovered the hidden staircase and he was currently curled up on the throne with his head on the stone armrest fast asleep. The other clansmen had given up trying to get him to keep off of it and instead just shook their heads and smiled at the boy's daring.

"Itachi." The cat jumped up on the unoccupied armrest and called out. "Wake up, I have urgent news."

Itachi yawned, "What?" He sat up and stretched, stiff from the odd position he had slept in.

"Three ANBU attacked Rumiko and Umihiko, killing them. Sheeta attacked, killing two and incapacitating one. The survivor is being brought to the Hideout for interrogation. Sheeta is in the hospital, they don't know yet if she'll make it or not. The babies are unharmed." The cat finished speaking and disappeared, back to the summon realm.

Itachi sat motionless as disbelief and sorrow washed over him. He couldn't believe Rumiko was gone and Sheeta might not survive. He couldn't imagine a life without her. He had already lost one best friend, what would he do without Sheeta?

"I have to tell the others." He stood up and walked slowly out of the room. As he made his way to the training area another emotion took over: anger.

Entering the large room he saw the men and women spaced out evenly, practicing jutsus. He walked to the front of the room and called them over, "Urgent news from Konoha, everyone gather around."

"What happened?" The commander asked as everyone ran across the room to form a circle around Itachi.

"I just got a message from Lord Fugaku and there is an ANBU prisoner on the way here. I want to say up front that he is mine." Itachi's words were laced with anger and everyone stared at him in surprise. They had never seen him like this and were instantly curious about what was going on.

"He is the sole survivor of three ANBU who attacked and killed Rumiko and Umihiko. Sheeta attacked and killed two of them, but she is in the hospital and may not live." Itachi clenched his fists in anger.

"What about the babies?" Someone asked.

"They were unharmed." Itachi answered.

Shock and sorrow washed over the shinobi, followed by feelings of betrayal and anger. The men and women muttered words of retribution and condolence as they tried to come to terms with what they had just been told.

"We'll all pray for her, Itachi." A woman said and Itachi looked up at her and nodded. "Sheeta is an amazing girl. A strong kunoichi, easily Chuunin level."

A man spoke with a mixture of sadness and awe, "I trained with her a few weeks ago. Her close-quarters fighting skills are top-notch for a girl her age. Then again, she did have Rumiko as a teacher, and she is an Uchiha. I hope she survives."

Another man added, "She's small and flexible and can move in and around people like water. When she's fighting it's like watching a dance."

Itachi frowned and looked at the floor, his eyes half closed. He rarely trained with her anymore and had no idea she had progressed that far, usually they just held hands and talked. He was now driven to see this "dance" of hers. She had to survive.

The commander spoke up, "Come with me Itachi, I'll show you where the interrogations are held. You two," he pointed to a couple men, "come with us and help. It'll take a couple days for the prisoner to get here, but first I need to tell you about how we do things here."

They entered the hallway and started walking toward the center of the fortress. "Interrogation isn't just about torture, which is what I'm sure is going through your head right now. We need to extract information. The people bringing him will have a list of questions and we have to get those answered. Failure is not an option."

Itachi was immediately disappointed. He had, of course, intended to torture the man. "Understood." He was silent for a couple minutes, "After I get the information, can I torture him?"

The commander and the two men following laughed. "Yes, of course. The blood of our clansmen demands it."

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Itachi was back in his room reading the official Uchiha manual on interrogation. It contained several Genjutsu techniques as well as psychological and physical methods to obtain information. After all the dry reading he had done over the last two weeks he found the document quite interesting. There were even some new techniques he had not read about before.

"Oh, there's the kitten." A black and white cat walked in through the partially open door. Because there was no window in the room he had left it open for ventilation.

"Oh. More messages? Anything about Sheeta?" Itachi stared at the cat, worried about what he was going to say.

"Sheeta will make a full recovery."

"Thank God." Itachi put his head in his hands, suddenly remembering that he hadn't gone to the shrine yet to say a prayer for her.

"Fugaku also doesn't want you to do anything without consulting him first. All of the attackers were taken out." The cat jumped up on the table and lay down on top of the book Itachi had been reading.

Itachi started stroking his fur. "What did he think I was going to do?"

"You tell me. You're the one that gets in a fury and sees red." The cat started purring.

"Oh. Right. I guess maybe I've got a slight reputation then." Itachi grinned sheepishly.

"Just a little one. That had a bunch of people scared you would take out half of Konoha to avenge Sheeta if she died."

"I'm sure you're exaggerating, but I get the point."

"What are you reading?" This cat was always talkative and Itachi enjoyed having him around.

"I'm going to torture… um… interrogate the prisoner." Itachi looked down at the cat-covered book.

"Ah good. Every kitten needs a hobby." The cat laughed then disappeared.

Itachi picked up his book and blew away some stray cat hairs. "I'm not a kitten."

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Later that night Itachi walked into the kitchen and switched on the lights. The large room looked the same as it had eight years ago. The multitude of stainless steel tables, cooking implements of all kinds hanging from hooks and various ovens, sinks, storage units and freezers surrounded the periphery.

Itachi didn't know exactly why he had come here. Except, perhaps, it was where he had met Rumiko. She had been fifteen at the time and Itachi and Shisui had liked her from the first moment she had spoken to them.

"_You must be hungry – standing here drooling at the food." She smiled at them as they gratefully accepted the sandwiches. "My name is Rumiko. My family lives in the Fire Country capital city. What are your names?"_

"_I'm Shisui." He said, concentrating on eating. He hadn't realized how hungry he was._

"_My name is Itachi. I am pleased to meet you." He bowed politely. Shisui saw Itachi and quickly bowed too, slightly embarrassed at not greeting her properly._

"_How old are you?" Shisui asked. She didn't look too much older than Obito._

"_I'm fifteen. My father was assigned by Fugaku to serve the Daimyo, so I act as a ninja in the Daimyo's service as well. I've lived there since I was seven. We don't get to visit Konoha very often, so I've never seen you two before."_

"_Are the boys done unpacking the cans?" Saiyu's voice sounded from across the room. Rumiko turned around and winked at Saiyu who smiled back at her._

"_Quick! Make a run for it or she'll make you polish the chopsticks!" She pushed them toward the exit and the boys took the hint and took off running down the hall._

As he remembered that day, he thought he could almost hear their voices. "Shisui, Rumiko, Saiyu." He spoke out loud to the empty room and for some reason he half expected them to answer, or to even see them standing in front of him, smiling. But the room remained empty and silent.

Glancing over at a row of cabinets he saw one of then had a couple dents in it. He remembered how he and his father had struck the cabinet after he had killed his first man. "I was only four then." He remembered how traumatic the whole incident had been. "I think that was when my nightmares started."

He turned around and left the room, turning the lights off behind him. As he walked back down the hall to his room he saw the commander leaning against the wall and looking out a window.

"Walking around alone in the middle of the night? This place is haunted Itachi. Be careful." The commander looked the boy in the eye and gave him a smile that he obviously didn't feel.

"Yes. I was just visiting some, but I guess they didn't feel like company." Itachi answered, a twinge of regret in his voice.

"Yeah. It's always like that. You can feel them here almost to the point where you could swear if you reached out you could touch them, but they don't show themselves. This place used to give me horrendous nightmares when I was a kid. I spent many hours at this window looking outside because I couldn't sleep." The man looked up at the moon as he spoke.

"Goodnight Commander Norio." Itachi said quietly as he walked past him. Norio nodded once in acknowledgement.

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Instead of returning to his room Itachi walked to the throne room and curled up on the throne, using his jacket as a blanket. The large room was brightly lit with overhead lights and seemed, somehow, comfortable. Or perhaps "comfortable" was the wrong word. Maybe it was that the room felt slightly less overwhelming than the rest of the massive fortress. He considered walking down into the chamber and sleeping there, or at least grabbing a pillow but he fell asleep almost before he could finish the thought.

A tall man walked into the room and stood at the bottom of the stairs looking up at the sleeping boy. He was struck with how helpless Itachi looked when asleep. His slight form was curled into a ball with his arm cradling his head on the armrest. The boy's hair was loose from its tie and fell across his face. Smiling, Madara climbed the stairs until he was standing next to the throne. Reaching down he stroked the boy's hair with his gloved hand, moving it away from his face.

Slowly Itachi drifted up through a haze of sleep. He felt something on his head. It was petting him. He wondered if he was a cat, and if so shouldn't he be sleeping on something soft? As his mind started to regain consciousness he realized it was a person stroking his hair. Alarmed he quickly sat up and stared at the man in front of him.

"What took you so long to wake up, Itachi? That isn't like you." Madara laughed.

"I don't know. I think this place is…" He looked around as if expecting something to appear, then yelled, "What the hell did you think you were doing?"

"Well, I thought about putting your hand in a bowl of warm water but since there wasn't one available that was all I could come up with on short notice." Madara smirked. He continued, this time in a serious voice, "I sensed that someone had broken into my chambers. I had a feeling it was you." Madara walked around to the back of the thrown and looked at the open stairway.

"Yeah, well, it was easy to figure out." Itachi bragged. It was uncharacteristic of him, but he felt a little pride about figuring out a puzzle that had eluded three generations.

"For you. Ever since I sealed it up no one else has found it."

"If it were up to me this place would be destroyed." Itachi said glumly.

Madara gave him a critical look, "Do you think ghosts die that easily Itachi? They are not linked to a place but to our own perception of their existence."

"A memory." Itachi simplified.

"Perhaps."

Itachi looked up at Madara who had walked around to the front of the throne again. "How is Aya?"

Madara chuckled, "The princess is adjusting. It's a bit of a culture shock, where I took her. The people are more aggressive than she is used to but she learned to stick up for herself pretty quick. She's a bright girl, but I'm still thinking she's a trouble-maker. I must say, she's turned the heads of several young men already." He gave a short laugh, "She won't give them the time of day though. Which seems to make them chase after her even more for some reason."

Itachi smirked, "Princess?"

"It fits." Madara shrugged. "So what are you looking for, or are you bored and chasing old legends?" Madara got back to the original subject.

"Anything on Mangekyou Sharingan techniques." He didn't see the point in lying to Madara. For one thing it never worked, and for another, what else would he be looking for?

"Of course. Well, I guess if it keeps you from ransacking my quarters I'll just show you where they are."

As soon as they reached the bottom of the staircase Madara used a jutsu to light several kerosene lamps. The room was illuminated with a soft glow. It was large but modestly furnished much to Itachi's surprise. He had expected the elder Uchiha to have more flamboyant tastes. When he had descended into the room the previous day he had spent some time looking around, opening drawers and cabinets. Nothing stood out. It was, for all intents and purposes, a normal apartment.

The bed was a large futon with a black quilt and red pillows. It was laid out on a large plush red rug. A large red enamel wardrobe stood against the wall nearby. The other end of the room appeared to be an eating and work area with a traditional black enamel table, file cabinets and several tall book cases loaded with hundreds of scrolls and books. A small cooking area was near the staircase. A handful of simple statues decorated the area and a cabinet held several black and white photos of men, women and children of various ages.

One photo caught Itachi's eye and he picked it up. Madara stood smiling at the camera holding a laughing toddler in his arms while a woman with a rounded stomach stood behind him and four feet to his left looking modestly at the ground.

Madara picked up a different photo and handed it to Itachi. This one was of two different children, a seven-year-old boy who looked almost exactly like Sasuke and a three-year-old girl. The boy was holding the girl in this lap and both were laughing.

"They all died of various diseases. That's why your great-grandfather took over leadership after I left." Madara spoke quietly. He handed Itachi a third photo. Madara stood in the middle of several young ninjas ranging in age from four to early teens. Everyone was smiling and a couple boys at the edge were laughing. He pointed to a serious looking older boy who was staring straight at the camera. He had the kind of smile you plaster on your face because you were told to "smile" and not because you wanted to. Madara's hand was planted firmly on his shoulder. He looked remarkably like Fugaku.

"My great-grandfather?" Itachi asked.

"Yes. The girl standing next to him is your great-grandmother."

Itachi saw a determined looking girl, smiling and looking sideways at the boy. He looked closer and saw that the two were holding hands. It reminded him of himself and Sheeta and the smile that had appeared on his own face only seconds earlier disappeared as he thought of the girl recovering in a hospital bed.

"The boy standing here in the front" Madara pointed to a child who appeared to be the youngest, "is Kentaro and the girl next to him is Saiyu."

The girl was smiling cheerfully with her arms across her chest and Kentaro was leaning playfully on a boy who was a few inches taller than him. On the whole, it was very casual and friendly. And they looked hopeful. In the photo, forever locked in time, the future didn't exist. Itachi looked closely into Kentaro's eyes and suddenly he felt like the boy in the picture was looking directly at him… or perhaps "through" him.

Madara walked over to the bookcases and started scanning the titles. He thought back to when the photo was taken. It was after the village was founded. The clan insisted on training their own children instead of sending them to the newly founded Academy and Madara had insisted on doing some of the instruction himself. He enjoyed being around children, their eagerness to learn and cheerful outlook was something that he looked forward to. The group in that specific photo were all important. They were the last generation to be born in the Hideout, but the first to be raised in Konoha. They were seen as a bridge to connect the old ways with the new ways.

Itachi put the pictures back. He was struck by the lack of dust on the frames and realized the place was spotless. "Are you still living here?"

"Occasionally." Madara smirked.

"While the clan operates above?" Itachi laughed, despite himself. It really was ludicrous that while the clan maintained their base, below them was a semi-luxurious apartment of their most notorious leader.

"I'm glad you find it amusing."

"Yeah. Well, it's funny." Itachi started to look through the titles on the shelves. He saw a mixture of several genres and realized that if Madara even read half of them he was probably well educated despite his warrior lifestyle. Itachi had looked through all the books on one of the bookcases the previous day and found nothing of interest.

Madara pulled a book off the shelf and put it in his pocket. "Can't have you learning too much." He said plainly. Madara then handed Itachi three scrolls. "This is all there is. I was the only one who wrote in-depth about the subject. Everyone else would just glance over it."

"Thank-you." Itachi said as he accepted the scrolls.

"When are you going to do it Itachi?" Madara asked, his tone changing to one of impatience. Or so it seemed to Itachi.

"I… don't know. I was wondering the same thing." Itachi turned around and walked back up the stairs. When he reached the top he realized that his chances of getting back into the chamber below were slim. After this, Madara would no doubt use a stronger seal to protect his quarters.

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Four Uchiha ninjas arrived at the Hideout with the prisoner. Itachi and Commander Norio met them at the entrance. The ANBU was still dressed in his gear, although his mask was long gone and he had bruises all over his body.

One of the newly arrived clansmen handed the commander a scroll. He opened it and quickly scanned through the contents before handing it to Itachi. "These questions are pretty basic. I guess Fugaku just wanted some good old fashioned torture and wasn't interested in the particulars." Norio laughed as he turned to the prisoner, "I guess this isn't going to be your lucky day."

The ANBU kept his mouth shut, and stared intently at Itachi, who stared right back. The others watched them for a couple minutes until Norio interrupted, "Do you recognize him, Itachi?"

"No. He is not part of ROOT. I do not remember seeing him around the training grounds or his profile. I do not know everyone in ANBU, though, so that doesn't mean a lot." Itachi's words were quick and to the point. His eyes looked the prisoner up and down, noting everything from the bruises, tattered clothing, clenched fists and exhaustion. ROOT was a small subsection of ANBU and while he was familiar with all its members, he had met few of the regular ANBU.

"Let's get started then." Norio frowned and grabbed the rope attached to the man's hands.

Once in the interrogation room two Uchiha's sat down at desks at the edge of the room and opened notebooks. They would act as scribes, recording the events for a written record. Norio leaned back against the wall by the door and Itachi stood in front of the prisoner, who was sitting on the floor with his hands and legs wrapped with chakra draining ropes.

When Itachi had seen the ANBU he had become suspicious. He had never seen the man before, and while that didn't necessarily mean anything, it still set off alarms.

"What village do you come from?" Itachi started with the first question on the list.

"Konoha, of course." The man answered.

"Who is your commander?" The second question was asked.

"None of your business." That answer was expected. ANBU were not to give names when asked or interrogated.

"Why did you attack our clansmen?" Itachi asked the last question.

"Because we were bored." That answer was annoying, but Itachi maintained his emotionless demeanor.

"Those were all the questions we had to ask. I guess I can start in on the torture now." Itachi smiled and pulled out a kunai and knelt down next to the man. He put the knife on his cheek and pulled down just enough to draw blood. Itachi was determined to get the answers to the questions and knew from past experience that making the prisoner think he was half-insane usually freaked them out enough to start talking.

"Which Hokage was the Academy named after?" Itachi asked quietly. The scribes' eyes looked up at him questioningly, before returning to their notebooks.

The ANBU didn't speak.

"I think it was the First." Itachi made another cut next the first. "Tobirama Academy. Did you graduate from there?"

The ANBU answered quickly, "Of course."

Itachi made a deeper cut across the first two. "Which Hokage was Tobirama?"

"The First!" The ANBU spat.

"What village are you from!" Itachi asked angrily. He glanced at Norio who was no longer leaning against the wall, but was now a few steps behind Itachi.

"Konoha! I told you that!"

"You are not. Tobirama was the Second Hokage and the Academy is just the Academy. It doesn't have any other name." Itachi revealed the man's errors. "Seriously, you have to be the worst ninja ever. What kind of a lame village produces shinobi who are so stupid they can't think their way through those questions? We haven't even spent five minutes in here yet."

Itachi turned to Norio, "Have we gotten any other communications from Konoha? I want to know the identities of the other two."

"I'll get right on it. You," He pointed to one of the scribes, "run out and have someone send a message to Konoha. Priority 1." The man stood up and ran out of the room.

Returning his attention to the prisoner Itachi was silent for a long time.

"I know I'm not getting out of this alive, so it doesn't matter what you do to me." The man smiled at Itachi condescendingly.

"I know you not getting out of this alive either, so I don't care what I do to you either." Itachi answered, shrugging his shoulders. The prisoner blinked his eyes once in surprise, not expecting an answer like that.

Itachi reached over and made another cut on the man's cheek. "Have you ever heard of the 'Torture of a Thousand Cuts'?" Itachi waited a second but the prisoner didn't answer. "I cut a piece of skin off of you, one thousand times. The old emperors used to use it on people who would break into their palaces. It's quite painful _and _it takes a month." Itachi reached over with his Kunai again and removed a half inch square of skin from the prisoner's cheek. "That's one."

"Are you crazy?" The man screamed.

Itachi reached out again and removed another piece of skin, "That's two."

"Stop it!"

"But I thought you said you didn't care what happened to you? I figured in that case you wouldn't mind a long, drawn out death." Itachi frowned and looked disappointed.

"I'm from Cloud, okay? Happy now?" The prisoner shook his head, trying to clear it. He was exhausted and the cuts were extremely painful. Blood was dripping freely from the wounds, running down his face and neck.

"Why were you after Uchihas?" Itachi asked.

"We got a commission from a customer who wanted that particular household assassinated. It was just a mission."

Itachi frowned, "What was the rank of your team?"

"Chuunin." The man was breathing heavily as he tried to mentally suppress the pain.

"Tell me the mission details." Itachi said sternly.

"C-rank, take out a sick ninja, husband, nanny and two infants. We…" He paused and cringed at the burning sensation that was now radiating from the exposed flesh in his cheek. "We went after the husband first with a poisoned senbon, then the woman tried to fight, but she could barely stand. The nanny ran in and…" his voice trailed off.

"How did you kill Umihiko?" Itachi was curious about how three low level ninjas could get by the Jounin.

"We… shot a senbon at him… it was poisoned… while he was on patrol. It was a small one… quarter inch… imbeds in the flesh… breaks down and can't be detected. He was too weak to fight us." The prisoner was gasping.

Itachi looked at Norio who was standing with his arms wrapped around his chest and frowning. "Do you have any questions?"

"Not for him." Norio answered.

Itachi lifted his kunai and brought it down across the man's throat. He fell to the ground, dead. He finished removing the head and propped it against the body so the blood would drain out.

"Is that all? I thought you were going to go all out on him." Norio asked calmly.

"There's no satisfaction in chasing the grunts. It's better if we get the person who hired them. It could have been someone from Konoha, or someone who was after Rumiko. She was in Cloud's Bingo book after all." Itachi sighed. "Cloud didn't see the mission as difficult and sent low-level ninjas. But why disguise themselves as Konoha ANBU? And who let them into the village? If Sheeta hadn't woken up… That was their mistake. It sounds like a small girl using Taijutsu in a small space was more than they could handle. If they had been real ANBU she would be dead now."

The commander looked closely at the boy in front of him, "That's quite an astute observation, Itachi. You are truly your father's son." Norio turned around and walked toward the scribe just as Itachi aimed a particularly malevolent glare at him.

Itachi snorted. Frustration and anger battled for dominance over his emotions as he clenched his fists and walked silently out of the room. Someone in Konoha was responsible for this… but who?

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The rhythmic beeping was annoying and as Sheeta opened her eyes she fully intended to get up and stop that awful sound. However, when she tried move she found herself incredibly weak. Also, the room was unfamiliar.

'Hospital.' She thought to herself. 'It must be Fumitake's monitors beeping. I wonder if he's feeling better today.'

"Sheeta!" A teen-age girl stood over her bed, "Emi! Sheeta's awake!" A woman with bloodshot eyes came into view.

"Finally! Sheeta, how are you?" The woman stroked Sheeta's face tenderly and smiled.

"Mom?" Sheeta said weakly. She realized she wasn't in Fumitake's hospital room, it was her own and she was the patient. Suddenly all her memories of the fight with the three ANBU returned to her and she started struggling to get up, "The babies! Rumiko! Where are they?"

Emi put her hands over Sheeta's arms while Nui held her legs, "Calm down! You're going to hurt yourself!"

Sheeta stopped struggling as tears leaked out of her eyes, "Tell me where they are!"

Emi and Nui released the girl. They sat down on opposite sides of the bed. Nui took Sheeta's hand and spoke quietly. "Rumiko and Umihiko are dead. The babies were untouched and are with Rumiko's parents."

"No! They can't be!" Sheeta sobbed.

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Sarutobi looked over the various reports arranged side-by-side on his desk. The police, ANBU, and a team of Jounins had conducted three separate investigations and discovered the same thing. The attack earlier that week had been a hit perpetrated by Cloud ninjas to take out Rumiko. However, the Hokage was struck by the ease of which it had worked to turn the Uchiha against him.

The clan had shut itself up inside its compound, even going so far as to close the gate doors and post two very intimidating guards. The twins and Sasuke were now guarded twenty-four hours a day. The Academy's headmaster had reported that the three ninjas following the young boy were ordered to be discrete and not let him know they were there. Fugaku was going to great lengths to protect his youngest son. It was a complete turn-around from the way Itachi had been raised.

Looking out over the village, Sarutobi's thoughts returned to the events following the Kyuubi invasion. Back then, Fugaku had personally executed several Uchiha traitors. Itachi had been there to watch, and when the small boy had reacted his father had not hesitated to strike him in front of everyone. That had always bothered him, but he held his tongue knowing it was none of his business. Or at least that was what he thought at the time. Now… he wished he had said something to the child.

"There are too many regrets in this job." The Hokage sighed.

He was supposed to be meeting with Fugaku at the moment but the clan lord had called it off. Apparently, from what Sarutobi had gathered, Fugaku believed the contract with Cloud was initiated by someone in Konoha. He had dispatched several of his clansmen to investigate.

Sarutobi was disappointed in the clan's insistence that they were being persecuted. There was no middle ground when dealing with an attitude like that. Everything that happened, everything he said was taken with a grain of salt and run through a hundred different "what-if" scenarios to see if it was anti-Uchiha in any way.

Chief among Fugaku's complaints was Danzou. He had bumped heads with man several times over the years, but the veiled hostility had come out into the open when Shisui had been accused of influencing his sensei's illegal activities.

The Hokage shook his head. Danzou was extending his reach and testing his limits. He had always done so, but lately it had become a constant struggle to keep the man in line. He and Danzou had never seen eye-to-eye on how Konoha should be governed. Sarutobi preferred a "hands-off" type of management that allowed people to grow and reach their own potential. Danzou was a militaristic man who wanted to direct that growth and use people according what their abilities were, whether that person wanted to do it or not.

No matter what Fugaku implied, though, Sarutobi refused to believe that Danzou would turn against him. As much as the man hated the Uchiha, what would he have to gain by killing Rumiko and her family? The woman was a top-notch kunoichi and in the Bingo books of many foreign shinobi nations. In her weakened condition it probably was just a matter of time before someone tried to take her out.

The only suspicious part of the assassination was that her family had also been targeted. Usually only the target would be taken out. The rest of the family would remain untouched. However, it could simply be a case of "opportunity". The chance to remove five Uchihas from their enemy's roster may have been too tempting to pass up.

Sarutobi sat back in his chair and sighed. Perhaps in a couple weeks Fugaku will have gotten over his paranoia and they could begin their discussions again. It was too important and postponing it for very long was not something the Hokage felt should happen. There was too much at stake.

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**Next week: Itachi's return to Konoha puts him face to face with his mother, Danzou, and he has heart-to-heart conversation with Sheeta. There will also be a scene with Sasuke for those chibi-Sasuke lovers o.O**

**I thought I should explain the two jokes Madara played on Itachi, since perhaps other countries might not have heard of them. They are both used in TV shows for cheap laughs…**

**There is an old story that if you put a sleeping persons hand in warm water they will dream about pee and wet the bed. **

**A guy will caress another guy (who is asleep) while speaking in a fake sexy woman's voice. The sleeping man will dream of a woman and begin talking in his sleep to the sexy woman. The awake guy will laugh his head off, thus waking his "friend" who quickly realizes he was talking to a man instead of a woman. Embarrassment, followed by (attempted) murder is the result. **

**Please review! **


	58. Chapter 58 Revelations

**Last week Itachi tortured…um… interrogated the surviving ANBU and discovered he was from Cloud.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and fav's! More are always welcome!**

**Disclaimer: oturaN snwo otomihsiK**

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**Chapter 58 - Revelations**

Sasuke watched with growing concern as Itachi walked silently across the yard and entered the house. The older boy stopped when he reached the step that led from the foyer to the hall and turned around, as if realizing he had forgotten something. He had a faraway look in his eyes and held his mouth tightly in a straight line.

"Welcome back big brother." Sasuke said politely, a nervous waver entering his voice.

"Thank-you Sasuke. Have you been to see Sheeta?" His voice was calm and lacked emotion. Sasuke wondered if he was mad or perhaps tired.

"Yes, yesterday. She's not contagious anymore so we can visit her now. We played cards but she got tired so we had to leave." Sasuke gave his brother a small smile, but started to fidget, moving from one foot to the other. For some reason Itachi was making him nervous.

Itachi creased his brows, "Contagious?"

"Well, yeah. She has ammonia like Rumiko and Umihiko. Only… she was lucky and they found her before she died." Sasuke's voice shook a little bit as he spoke.

"Pneumonia." Itachi corrected.

"Then we went to see the babies. They cry a lot."

"Babies do that." Itachi gave a short chuckle and closed his eyes, "You especially."

Sasuke frowned, "I'm not a cry baby!"

"Of course." Itachi's half smile faded as he slipped his shoes off and entered the hallway.

Sasuke stood and watched his brother until he disappeared from view. Things had become tense in the clan since Rumiko and Umihiko had died. It hadn't been like that when Shisui or the elders had died last year and he felt like he was walking on eggshells around his father and a few of the others. Not only were they whispering a lot, but they seemed to be angry all the time and Fugaku had snapped at Sasuke a few times for simple things like leaving books in the living room or a shuriken in the kitchen.

'Something is going on.' Sasuke said to himself, but the statement just left him more confused than he was earlier.

"Sasuke," Mikoto peeked into the entryway, "weren't you supposed to be heading to school for your field trip? You have to be there at noon, remember?"

"Oh yeah!" Sasuke quickly put on his shoes and ran out of the house, his thoughts quickly turned to an autumn afternoon spent in the woods.

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Itachi heard his brother run out of the house and walked back into the hall. He angrily faced his mother, "Pneumonia?"

"Your father doesn't want him to know they were attacked." She looked down at him with a pleading look in her eyes, "Please don't tell him."

"You are over-protecting him."

Mikoto moved closer and put a hand on Itachi's shoulder, "There is no reason for him to grow up like you did. Times are different Itachi. Please don't do this to him."

"I wasn't going to do anything to him. I was just making a statement. I certainly do not consider myself qualified to make life-decisions for a seven-year-old boy."

This comment took Mikoto by surprise and she removed her hand and stepped back.

Itachi continued speaking in a calm, measured voice, "However, here is something you may want to consider. The day after the coup, how will Sasuke react? How will you explain the dead bodies in village, the fighting, and the hate that will be directed towards the clan by those who oppose father? What will he think when he finds out he was shielded from all of this? He goes to bed one night, wakens only to be rushed to a secure place for twenty-four hours then comes out to a destroyed village and he's going to remain the same happy little boy you saw this morning?"

"Don't you think I know that?" Mikoto hissed in anger.

"No, mother, I don't. I think you are deluding yourself still. I thought you had learned to stand up to father, but I guess you are still the same weak woman you were when I was four."

Itachi's words cut through Mikoto like a knife and she scowled as she brought her hand up and slapped her son hard across the face. "_You know nothing_ if that is what you think. _Dammit Itachi_! I did all of this to try to protect you! And I'm going to protect Sasuke!"

Itachi clenched his fists as his face screwed up with anger and he began yelling, "Mission failed, _Mikoto_. Nothing can protect me now. I am nothing more than an animated corpse, following the whims of those who think themselves more powerful than me." Itachi turned around and saw his father standing about ten feet behind him. They locked eyes for a few tense seconds before Itachi walked down the hall and entered his room, sliding his door shut with a "bang" behind him.

"Fugaku…" Mikoto said in a weak voice.

He closed his eyes and shook his head before walking away.

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"Sheeta?" Itachi walked into the hospital room a few hours later and smiled at the girl sitting up in the bed. She had her long black hair in a ponytail and wore a red satin jacket over her white nightgown. She and her mother, who was sitting nearby, were looking at a catalog that was spread out on the bed.

"Itachi!" Sheeta's face lit up with the biggest smile he had ever seen her give him. Curiously, it lifted his spirits and he found himself walking across the room, placing the rose he brought in a flower-filled vase then sitting down on the bed and bending over the girl to kiss her. He brought one hand up and placed it behind her head for leverage.

Sheeta's eyes opened in shock and she gave a surprised squeak.

The sound of a woman clearing her throat interrupted them. Itachi pulled back and looked at Emi, smiling.

"I guess I'll overlook that since you no doubt have been worried sick over the health of _my daughter_, but in future remember that you are both still only twelve." Her formal words were replaced with a warm smile, "I'll leave you two alone for a while. I need to go to the grocery store and pick up a few things anyway." She waved cheerfully as she closed the door behind her.

Itachi looked back at Sheeta and saw that her face was bright red. For some reason he didn't understand he thought it was cute. She reached up and touched his necklace.

"You always wear this?" Sheeta asked quietly.

"I have never removed it since you put it on me."

"What… what happened?" Sheeta put her hand on Itachi's face. There was a large bruise covering his left cheek.

Itachi pulled back a little at the contact. It still hurt and the inside of his mouth had even received a small cut from his molars, which was why he had to wait so long before visiting Sheeta. He had to wait for it to stop bleeding.

"Nothing." Itachi responded.

Sheeta knew better than to press the matter and instead pulled out an envelope, "Here are the pictures from… before…" She trailed off as she looked through the photos before pulling one out. It showed Itachi and Sheeta standing against a wall and holding the twins. Both babies had their eyes wide open and were looking at each other. Itachi and Sheeta were smiling and holding hands. He blinked in surprise. He didn't remember her grabbing his hand.

"Why did you want this picture, Sheeta?" Itachi found its hint of domestic bliss somehow disturbing. Although he couldn't place his finger on why.

Sheeta blushed again and spoke in a quiet voice, "I thought… I wanted a picture of you and me with kids because… when…" She let her words trail off again but Itachi knew what she was talking about. If the coup went badly then such a picture would never come to pass.

"You used to be such a tomboy Sheeta." Itachi teased.

"Mom…I mean mother is brainwashing me." She laughed nervously. "Are you mad at me?"

Itachi thought about that. Was he mad? Yeah, he had to admit he was, but not at Sheeta. "No. It's okay."

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Silence filled the almost-empty police station. The early morning hours found only a few staff and officers hanging about quietly gossiping or even playing games to pass the time until dawn. Patrols were sparse in the quiet hours of the morning, leaving the police nothing more to do but find ways to stay awake.

Fugaku sat in his office reviewing the schedule for the upcoming month. The duty officers had created the schedules, but Fugaku liked to see them anyway. He sighed in frustration when he saw Umihiko, Rumiko and Sheeta's names left off the list. Two would never return and one would be gone for a month. Well, Sheeta was only part time anyway because of her age, but still, her unique personality was something everyone looked forward to when she was there.

A loud bang startled Fugaku out of his thoughts. A book had been dropped on his desk, and a shadow fell forward across it. "Why are you still alive?" Fugaku asked in frustration.

Madara laughed, "That's a secret." He dropped down into a chair and removed his mask, placing it on the edge of the neatly organized desk. "And I think you need a new opening line. That must be the fiftieth time you've asked me that."

"What's this?" Fugaku picked up the book. The text was handwritten in very neat Chinese. He glanced through it and saw diagrams of eyes and descriptions of jutsus. "Who wrote this and why is it in Chinese?"

"Can Itachi read Chinese, Fugaku?" Madara asked quietly.

"Not that I am aware of. He might, though."

"But you can. In fact, from what I've heard you can read and speak several languages." Madara sat back and rested his arms on the armrests of his chair.

"Yes… but…" He looked closer at the book. "This is a description of the Mangekyou Sharingan. You wrote this?"

"My brother wrote it. Since you appeared to be so interested in him the last time we met I thought I would pass it on to you. Itachi has the papers I wrote, but I have a strange feeling he won't be sharing. Just as I have a strange feeling you won't be sharing this with him. Izuna was fascinated with an old Chinese sensei that stayed with the clan for a while when we were young and he took to writing his personal notes in that language."

"You're being talkative again." Fugaku pointed out. "How is Aya adjusting to Mist village?"

"Ah! My little princess is doing well. She is homesick, of course, but she's made a few new friends and keeps herself busy." Madara smiled

"'Princess'?" Fugaku raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"My little 'pet' name for her. I have grown quite attached to the little troublemaker." He smirked.

"Well, don't get too attached. She's coming back here in a couple years." Fugaku scowled.

Madara caught Fugaku's eye, "Perhaps."

"Madara, I need her back. She's an Uchiha female and she needs to bear children if we are to continue to exist as a clan." Fugaku's firm voice echoed slightly in the quiet room.

"So she is nothing more than a breeder to you."

"After what she did, it's the only thing she is to me." Fugaku stated truthfully.

Madara chuckled, "Then as long as she has children it shouldn't matter."

Fugaku was silent for a moment, fully realizing what the man in front of him was insinuating.

"Or did you just lie to me?" Madara taunted.

"The children must be raised in Konoha." Fugaku finally said.

"So you are giving me my little princess as long as I visit her when she's here? But Fugaku, I am Mizukage and soon you will be Hokage. How exactly would it look if my princess and children don't live with me? The gossips will go wild."

"Dammit Madara! What do you want from me! Just say it plainly and quit these childish antics!" Fugaku banged his hand on his table and yelled in anger. His self-control was hanging by a thread.

"I see where Itachi gets his temper from. Although unlike you, he has actually tried to attack me a couple times." Madara laughed. He was exaggerating to an extent; Itachi had only been about five or six at the time was really just throwing a temper tantrum over the news that Sasuke was not Fugaku's son.

"Gee, I wonder why. Perhaps we can go for a third time and actually have it cause some damage." Fugaku growled through clenched teeth.

"Unlikely." Madara was silent for a minute, then sighed. "What do I want from you? Conversation, perhaps? An alliance? Maybe… Actually what I am doing is measuring your strength. This place is important to me and I need to keep tabs on it and since your little coup has every chance of succeeding it interests me."

"You mean the nine-tails interests you." Fugaku clarified. "I will protect Naruto. He will not be turned over to you, by either Sarutobi or myself."

"Even if it means the death of everyone in the village?" Madara smirked when he saw the surprise on Fugaku's face. "Think about it Fugaku. I have that much power."

Fugaku wondered if that was true. As the Mizukage he had an army of ninjas at his disposal. As the man behind the Akatsuki he had several "S" ranked ninjas and whatever other resources that entailed. However, Konoha was certainly no pushover.

"Forget it, Madara. I would kill the boy myself before allowing you to get a hold of the Kyuubi. Then the village would be safe and the boy would die a quick, painless death instead of that three day one you inflicted on the other Jinchuurikis."

"Who would have thought you would be such a humanitarian." Madara said calmly as he stood up. "Think about what I said, Fugaku, and study that book." He disappeared.

Fugaku pushed the reports aside and picked up the book. He smiled as visions of Madara's horrible and painful death drifted through his head.

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Shaking off his heavy jacket, Fugaku laid it across the back of his chair before sitting down. The new year had started with a binge of cold, wet weather that had everyone bundling up. The stormy days were seen as a bad omen for the year to come by those who paid attention to such portents. Everyone else just threw an extra log on the fire and prayed for an early spring.

"Good news, Fugaku." Sarutobi said as soon as Fugaku had settled. "We are calling off most of the ANBU."

"Not all?" Fugaku asked, sipping a cup of tea. It felt good to be warm again after walking around on patrol for the last three hours.

"No. Not all. Twenty-five percent of the present numbers will remain. That is a big concession, Fugaku. Don't underestimate it." Sarutobi urged.

"Hn." Fugaku didn't see it as a big concession. He saw it as a symbolic adjustment. Most of the Uchiha had already become adept at evading their ANBU tails and the elders were well aware of this. They were pulling back ninja who didn't have anything to do.

Sarutobi continued, "I am going to press them to rescind the forced residency next. I understand you have ties with the capital that you were forced to sever. This would be an opportunity to renew them."

Fugaku continued to drink his tea, contemplating the Hokage's words. "What needs to happen to get the ANBU pulled all the way back?"

"Truthfully? I asked and received no answer. They are distrustful of the Uchiha, as you well know. However, I believe that as we introduce these concessions and your clan continues their support we can win them over."

"Perhaps." Fugaku set his cup down and leaned back in his chair. "But we have done that for decades already and yet… here we are."

"Then we will do it all again."

Fugaku was getting angry, "Will Itachi have to go through this as well in twenty years? And his son? And his son's son? How much distrust is my clan expected to put up with? Always working as hard as they can, sacrificing their lives, yet always under suspicion and forever persecuted."

"Fugaku!" Sarutobi yelled. Fugaku stopped talking and glared at the older man. "Fugaku. Don't exaggerate. We have to take this one step at a time. You have done nothing to earn this treatment and if you continue to do nothing it makes it easy for me to show the elders how wrong they are. Now, like I said, I will begin discussions with the council to get your forced residency rescinded. But you have to be patient."

Fugaku ground his teeth together. "Which part of what I just stated is an exaggeration?" He had already pushed his plans back several months because of Sarutobi's insistence on "discussing" the issues. The clan was not happy about it and grumbled loudly when he made the announcement. Now he would have to go before them at the next meeting and tell them that this mediocre and useless pullback of ANBU was all they had to show for it. It was not going to go over very well. And worst of all, he felt no desire to defend the decision either.

"That isn't the point." Sarutobi said angrily.

"Very well." Fugaku stood up and reached for his jacket. "I await the news of your next meeting. Thank-you for pulling the ANBU back. I can't guarantee that the others will feel it is enough, but I will inform them of the action."

Sarutobi's face fell, a mixture of sorrow and disappointment. "I understand. I will let you know."

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The dark underbelly of Konoha was a place most people didn't know existed. As they walked on its roads and inhabited its buildings they imagined, if they thought about it at all, that the earth below their feet was solid. However, it wasn't. There were miles and miles of underground corridors and secret rooms. Interrogation facilities, research laboratories, training grounds, storage rooms, and a hundred other uses. Even the people who knew about the underground didn't know its full extent. Except for one man.

Danzou had once wondered if the clan he had hired to tunnel out the base of Konoha was actually composed of moles. They were so efficient and so exact in their work that it didn't seem humanly possible. He rewarded them well, though, giving them a place to live in the darkest corner of the underground. The clan's Kekkei Genkai made their eyes sensitive to light and the ones who did choose to live above ground were forced to cover their eyes with bandages to protect them.

One other person had ventured down beneath Konoha as well. Itachi, in an attempt to spend quality time _away_ from his family had taken to wondering the deep corridors and endless rooms, mapping them in his mind with his photographic memory. He found the task enjoyable, a puzzle in three dimensions. The people he met were friendly enough; despite his time away from the village on missions and a not-so-social personality everyone seemed to have at least heard of Itachi the genius heir of the Uchiha clan. Although he would occasionally be warned that he really shouldn't be in a particular room, he was never chased away. He didn't know the underground as well and Danzou, but he was certainly catching up fast.

It was no surprise to the ROOT commander, then, when he told Itachi to meet him at a particular place that he didn't have to give him directions on how to get there. When the boy arrived, prompt as usual, Danzou greeted him with a nod of the head. "Itachi?"

They were on a platform in what looked like a large air chute. It stretched from the lower floor of the underground all the way to the surface. It was crisscrossed with walkways that met in wide platforms about twenty feet square on every level. Massive pipes stretched up vertically through the shaft carrying water, waste and other chemicals.

"I have some information for you." Itachi spoke in his usual monotone. He had thought long and hard about this conversation, about what he should and shouldn't tell his ROOT commander. He didn't trust Danzou; however, he seemed to be the village's best hope of surviving the coup.

Danzou noted the boy's hesitation and waited patiently for him to continue. He had pushed the boy this far, showing impatience might scare him away. Although the idea of Itachi being scared was laughable.

"You are aware of the Uchiha Hideout, of course." The statement was rhetorical and Itachi didn't wait for Danzou to answer. "Uchiha clansmen have been training there for a couple years now. They have been studying the various jutsus and Kekkei Genkai of the village in order to find the best way to fight them."

"That's a lot of time to prepare." Danzou wasn't surprised by this bit of information, and it was something he had actually already figured out himself. Although he had no idea exactly how skilled they had become. "How far have they gotten?"

"They have defenses for every Kekkei Genkai and all the major jutsus." Itachi's calm voice explained.

"All? Even the Hyuugas?" Danzou was shocked. He never expected this level of competence from the clan.

"That we have always had. Have you ever heard of a Hyuuga beating an Uchiha?" Itachi asked.

"As a matter of fact, no. How do you do it? The Byakugan is believed to have a natural defense against Genjutsu."

"First off, they are arrogant and keep their high-level techniques to a few in the main branch, meaning the side-branch is, on the whole, poorly trained at using their own Kekkei Genkai. The high-level techniques consist of Taijutsu. Using the Sharingan we can see their moves in slow motion. The sixty-four palms attack lasts a few seconds, but moves slower than we do. The Sharingan can see the exact moment the technique ends and attack. Because it uses so much chakra the target is unable to execute another attack for several minutes. Again, the Sharingan can be used to engage the target in Taijutsu and successfully miss all gentle-fist attacks. Hyuugas are trained for offense and tend to be very poor on defense. Therefore when they go up against someone they can't land a hit on and start getting hit themselves, they drop very quickly."

Danzou's un-bandaged eye opened wider and wider and Itachi explained a clear and concise way to take out a Byakugan user. It was so simple that he wondered why the Hyuugas didn't modify their attacks. The Hyuuga clan's attack was nothing more than a one-trick pony to the arrogant Uchiha.

"What about the perceptive insight gained from their Kekkei Genkai? It is known that it exceeds that of the Sharingan." Danzou asked sternly.

Itachi shrugged. "What about it? Nothing more than straight psychology. A ninja is trained to observe their opponent before and during attacks. I myself studied such methods at the Academy, through my father's lessons and from your lectures. Psychology is the reason Genjutsu works so well. Using the right attack will disable an enemy quickly and without wasting chakra. Psychology can be used as a tool to help determine what the right attack is. Besides, how exactly is that perception an asset in a Taijutsu fight? The Hyuuga are very poor at Genjutsu and ninjutsu that requires hand seals which limits their abilities even further."

"So the basic gist of your clan's strategy is to let them attack and wear themselves down, then go in for the kill before they can recharge their chakra." Danzou growled deep in his chest. Not many people could execute a strategy like that. Avoiding the many different chakra charged attacks the Hyuuga were capable of was difficult, if not impossible. Yet he knew better than to underestimate the Uchiha.

Before Konoha had been founded the Senju were a powerful ninja clan that was frequently hired by those who needed the best. However, one invariable fact was that the "other side" always hired the Uchiha, also believing they were getting the best. And they were. Senju and Uchiha, two sides of the same coin. The rest of the ninja clans paled in comparison. And that included the Hyuuga. It was why the second Hokage, Tobirama, had established a system to monitor the Uchiha clan and keep them in line simply because they were so powerful.

Itachi continued, "As for Genjutsu, it depends on the skill of the Uchiha. There are several of us skilled enough to capture and hold them. While the Byakugan can be said to have a natural defense against Genjutsu due to the perceptive insight gained from their eyes, that is not entirely accurate. As I said a minute ago, they have little skill with Genjutsu and do not practice it, relying instead on their Taijutsu attacks. This makes it easy, or _easier_ I should say, for us to cast Genjutsu on them."

"You can do this?" Danzou frowned, concerned that such power existed.

"Yes." Itachi's answer was so low-key that he could have been agreeing that it was a sunny day outside.

"Fugaku?" The name exited Danzou's mouth with great hesitation.

"Of course."

"Others?" This time the word was spoken in disbelief.

"I can think of about fifteen whom I am sure could do it and several others who could hold them for a few seconds to a minute."

Danzou gulped once. It couldn't be possible. He already knew that none of his ROOT or ANBU operatives could take out the clan, but he hadn't understood before just how impossible that task was. He would have to re-think his plans. He had been considering using Fugaku to kill Sarutobi, at which point he would move into the Hokage's robes while the village fought and killed the Uchiha traitors. However, if the village wasn't going to be able to effectively fight them, then Fugaku would become Hokage instead. On the other hand, there were only a couple hundred or so Uchiha's compared to thousands of Konoha shinobi. Casualties were to be expected on both sides.

"Is there anything else you wish to pass on, Itachi?" Danzou wanted to end the meeting quickly so he could return to his chambers. He had a lot to think about.

"No." Itachi pushed himself off the rail he had been leaning against and watched as Danzou walked slowly away. He realized he had badly shaken the man, and it affected him. He had hoped Danzou could help somehow, but it was more than obvious that "hope" was misplaced.

Itachi sighed. 'Perhaps I'm just overreacting. He needs to think about what I said.' He walked back up through the maze of corridors to the surface. On the way he decided to wait it out and see what Danzou could come up with. After all, Danzou was one of the best tacticians he had ever met.

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Walking back into the Uchiha compound, Itachi noticed that the gates were now open, although there were still guards standing nearby guarding it. They were out of sight and most people approaching the compound would think it unguarded. He remembered that Fugaku had a meeting that morning with the Hokage and he hoped that the open gates meant some sort of progress had been made.

Passing Rumiko's old house he stopped when he saw boxes being loaded onto a cart. It had been over two months since the murders and while all the baby stuff had been removed within the first week, everything else was left untouched.

"Oh, Itachi." Itachi looked up from the cart to see it was Rumiko's father who was loading the cart. "Sheeta is inside. Why don't you go talk to her?"

Umihiko's father walked out of the house with another box, "This is the last of it. Hi, Itachi."

"Hi. Where is she?" Itachi looked up at the two story house.

"Living room. We've been trying to get her to go home, but she just parked herself in a corner and won't move. We were planning on tying her up and dropping her off at her parents if she was still there when we finished." Rumiko's father said, concern evident in his voice.

"But since you're here, you can take care of it." Umihiko's father gave Itachi a small grin.

Itachi entered the house and walked down the hall and into the living room. The furniture had been covered with tarps to protect it and all personal effects had been removed. The cold interior was ghost-like, but didn't feel haunted. Instead it had an "abandoned" feel to it, as of a beloved possession that would no longer be used. He looked at the wall where the basinets and Rumiko's rocking chair had stood a few short weeks earlier. Nothing was there. It was almost like nothing had ever been there.

Turning around Itachi looked at the double doors that led out to the garden. Sheeta was sitting quietly in front of them with tears streaming out of her eyes. She had a far-off look on her face and didn't seem to have noticed he was there.

"I guess I'm supposed to tie you up and take you home." Itachi said quietly.

Sheeta looked up and made a simple declaration, "I want them dead, Itachi."

"Who?" Itachi was confused.

"The people in Konoha who ordered Rumiko's death. I want them dead."

"It was Cloud, Sheeta." Itachi explained calmly.

"It was Cloud, yes, but they were hired by someone in Konoha. Lord Fugaku said so." Sheeta's voice became angry, then she shouted, "I want them dead!"

Itachi didn't like seeing Sheeta like this. The girl was usually cheerful, argumentative and sometimes a little naïve. All of those characteristics made her someone Itachi looked forward to being with. A vengeful Sheeta was not at all attractive. Unfortunately, Itachi knew that he had acted on revenge several times himself. Even Shisui had gone after his old teacher with the intent to kill. It seemed to be in the Uchiha blood. Of course, he had to admit to himself that he did want to see the person responsible for their deaths writhing in pain before dying a horrible death. And he wanted to be the person causing the pain.

"Sheeta, he doesn't know that for sure. He even said he doesn't have proof." Itachi tried to calm her down.

"But he suspects it! I mean, look what Konoha has done to the clan! Killing Rumiko, trying to kill everyone here in the house, it would be a perfect plan to divide us!" Sheeta pleaded with the boy in front of her to see things her way.

He couldn't deny what she was saying. It would be a perfect plan. "You know, Sheeta, one thing they hadn't thought of… what if Cloud knew about how Uchiha were being treated and did this to make us think it was Konoha."

Sheeta stared up at him, dumbfounded. "I know we're all spying on each other, after all that's what Aya is doing wherever she is, but would they really be able to find out that much?"

Itachi frowned. "Probably not. They'd have to actually enter the village and that would be impossible. Although they could have turned Konoha shinobi to their side to do it." He knew that Cloud already had a spy in the village. There was no other way the enemy shinobi could have entered Konoha. Finding him, however, would be very difficult.

Sheeta looked at the ground. "I'm still scared, Itachi, but… I support the coup now. I thought about it while I was in the hospital, and I talked to Lady Mikoto and my parents. I've… spent a lot of time… I don't want our children to grow up in this environment. Where we have to watch our backs from our own comrades. I'm afraid to leave the compound."

"Sheeta…" Itachi dropped to his knees and sat in front of the tearful girl. "It isn't like that here. You're just upset right now. There is no one out to get us."

"There is!" Sheeta yelled again.

Itachi looked at her anxiously, 'Don't do this to me Sheeta,' he thought, 'don't let Fugaku take you from me.'

"I want Aya back. I miss her. And I want… " She looked up at Itachi, "I want you to be happy again."

This took Itachi so much by surprise that he sat up straight and looked directly into Sheeta's eyes. "Happy?"

She laughed nervously, "You sound like you don't know what the word means."

'I don't.' He admitted to himself, but to Sheeta he just gave a short chuckle, "I am happy. I'm very stressed out right now, but for me that's happy."

"You're a terrible liar, Itachi."

"Sheeta, make a promise to me." Itachi turned serious.

The girl's curiosity was piqued by the sudden change in subject, "What?"

"When the fighting begins, go with Sasuke and hide. Don't join in, and don't kill anyone unless you have to defend yourself or someone." Itachi took Sheeta's hand and held it tight.

"I'm a kunoichi, Itachi. A fighter. I'll be okay." She smiled, sure that Itachi was overreacting.

"That's not why I don't want you to fight." 

"Then what is it?"

"I don't want to marry another 'Mikoto'. I want someone like you. Do you promise?" Itachi pleaded with her, even though he was a little embarrassed to be doing it. He felt like he was lying to her, making a promise he couldn't keep, but in a perfect world where he would one day marry, it was the truth.

"Okay, if it means that much to you. I promise I won't fight." Sheeta suddenly giggled, "This conversation reminds me of one of the soap operas my mother watches. I never took you for a TV watcher, Itachi."

"I…" Itachi blushed a little without meaning to. "Maybe. I've always been told I'm more mature than my age, though. But… thank-you Sheeta. Can I walk you home now?"

"Yeah, I think I'm ready to go." She whispered quietly as she stood up.

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**Next week: Itachi becomes ANBU Captain and has an unexpected meeting with a man in Lightening country.**

**Another long explanation: **

**This chapter was hard to write, the conversations between Sheeta and Itachi needed to happen, but it's hard to write them without making Itachi OOC. **

**When comparing Hyuuga to Uchiha I used the manga and the Databook 3 stats. Also, while people on forums are saying the Byakugan is a natural defense against Genjutsu, I couldn't find anything in the manga to back that up and the Databook stats gave Hinata and Neji very poor scores in Genjutsu and Seals, so at this point I really don't think its true. Also, one big point no one seems to have brought up before… if Hyuuga could defeat Uchiha, why did they ask one Uchiha (Itachi) to kill them all instead of a bunch of Hyuugas? The clan is loyal and would have kept it quiet if asked. So… the manga would have to clarify it some more in future chapters…**


	59. Chapter 59 Captain

**Last Week: Itachi returned to Konoha and argued with his mother, kissed his girlfriend, and ventured underground into the depths of Konoha for a meeting with Danzou.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and favs, more are always welcome, and fun to read xD**

**We have a big storm coming here in a couple days and if we loose electricity it could be a week before it comes back (don't know why but that's how it is here) so if the next chapter is late, blame the mountains… hopefully it won't be that bad. (And for some reason I still love the snow…)**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto and Pain **_**owns**_** Konoha**

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**Chapter 59 – Captain**

Five cloaked, masked ANBU entered the front gate of Konoha and without pausing walked purposely down the street. Their authoritative steps and powerful chakra parted the pedestrian traffic like a hot knife in butter. People rushed to move to the side of the road and stared with a mixture of awe and concern. ANBU usually were unseen, unknown. To see them out in the open like this spawned whispers of discord and worries of conflict. The ANBU themselves consisted of two large men walking side-side-side, about five feet apart, two girls sixteen- and seventeen-years-old walking in the same position ten feet behind the men, and one newly-promoted thirteen-year-old captain walking in the center; Itachi Uchiha.

While the four ANBU in the front and back swiveled their heads in constant vigilance, the boy in the center maintained his gaze, holding his head up and staring straight ahead. The sureness of his step and concentrated gaze caused those who looked close at him to forget that he was flanked by four others. They were drawn in, watchful, apprehensive and wondered who that boy could be. How could someone like that even exist?

Danzou stood at the entrance to the ANBU building, waiting to greet them. His stern expression expecting nothing short of perfection. As he saw the crowd part for his ROOT operatives he felt he had come close to achieving it. He had wanted the village to understand the power of those that protect it, to fear the wrath of those who would punish them. To that end he had ordered this pretty little performance, knowing the effect it would have on the populace.

The five ANBU stopped before the man and knelt down respectfully, looking at the ground.

"Make your report, captain." Danzou said calmly.

Itachi spoke up, using the same tone, "Mission accomplished. All targets neutralized. No casualties."

"Very good. I have another mission for you. Assemble here tomorrow morning, prepared to leave."

"Yes." Itachi and the others answered simultaneously then used transportation jutsus to disappear, leaving five smoke swirls where their bodies were a second ago.

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Itachi reappeared in his bedroom, broadcasting his chakra so the others in the house would know it was him and not an intruder. He removed his mask and sat down on a wooden chair. Turning around he faced his door.

"Itachi? Would you like some lunch?" Mikoto's muffled voice came through the other side of the door.

Staring at the closed door he considered it. He wasn't hungry; in fact he hadn't had much of an appetite for weeks.

"Itachi, are you okay?" A hint of concern. He supposed it was a normal reaction, after all he had taken too long to answer. He stood up and opened the door, looking up at his mother.

"I am well." He exited the room and walked to the kitchen.

"Itachi. How was your mission?" Fugaku was sitting at the table eating a bowl of rice.

"It went as planned." Itachi sat down quietly and accepted the bowl of rice and vegetables his mother handed to him. He forced himself to swallow the food.

Fugaku looked over his son's uniform. He reached over and moved the cloak from Itachi's chest. "So you are a captain. When did that happen?"

"Right before we left on the mission, end of March." Itachi readjusted his cloak, then removed it, placing it on the floor next to his cushion. It wasn't comfortable to wear when eating and he was wishing he had removed it before leaving his room. Mikoto picked it up and folded it, placing it on the table next to him.

"Four weeks ago." Fugaku smiled. "You are everything I had hoped you would become, Itachi."

Itachi looked up from his rice and frowned. "How are the discussions with the Hokage proceeding?"

"Not well." Fugaku sighed. "The council refuses to back down. The man is weak and refuses to push them. He could easily use his authority but he keeps claiming that force is not a good way to win them over. Homura and Koharu were old friends of his and he refuses to go against them because of that. He claims he 'values their opinions'." He looked his son in the eye, "This places us in a bad position Itachi."

The boy nodded. Even if he didn't agree with his father's actions, he understood why he was doing it. "Perhaps it just takes time."

"The Uchiha elders are not patient men, Itachi. They are calling for blood. I cannot continue to hold them off." Fugaku admitted reluctantly. "I have told Sarutobi this, but I feel he is brushing me off. We no longer have the element of surprise behind us. They know what we are planning and are no doubt preparing themselves to fight us."

"They can't win." Itachi said plainly.

"No, but it means more casualties. I estimate about fifteen percent higher than my original figures." Fugaku stood up, "I've got to get back to the station. How long before you leave again?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"Mikoto, we should have the picture taken tonight, then."

"Yes. I'll let the photographer know." She smiled.

Fugaku nodded and left the room. Itachi looked back at the table. His father had seemed pre-occupied and he wondered just how much pressure the elders were putting on him. Itachi saw their attitude during meetings, but had not seen them when it was just his father and them. In the meetings they could be blunt but were always respectful. They had put Itachi on the spot several times, but he always emerged unscathed.

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Like most families, the Uchihas had their photo taken every year. It was not something Itachi ever thought twice about. In fact, he rarely even looked at the photos his mother mounted so carefully on the living room wall.

The photographer was actually the police photographer. He was a clansman who spent his time recording the clan's history in pictures and journals. Setting up against an empty wall in the meeting room he asked the family to get into position. Sasuke was being fidgety and Mikoto grabbed his arm and moved him in front of her, thus placing him between herself and Fugaku. Itachi stood about five feet away and looked down at the ground, lost in thought.

"Itachi?" The photographer looked up from the camera tripod, "Please move closer to Lady Mikoto."

Itachi blinked once, as if realizing where he was and stepped to the left. He was now three feet from his mother. The photographer frowned and waved his hand to the left. Itachi frowned back at him and moved one more foot to the left.

'Teenagers.' He thought grumpily to himself.

Focusing the camera he looked through the viewfinder with a critical eye. He saw Fugaku's serious face, Mikoto's loving eyes and the caring hands placed firmly on Sasuke, who was looking at the camera with a gaze that seemed slightly sad for some reason. Then there was Itachi. The boy was still small and very skinny. He only went up to his mother's nose. But it was his eyes that captured the photographer, and as he snapped the picture it was Itachi he was looking at.

That evening he lay in his bed until the early hours of the morning thinking about what he had seen. Fugaku and Mikoto had stood side by side, turned slightly into each other with Sasuke in the center. A typical family portrait. But Itachi had been standing two feet to the right of Mikoto. He was also standing at an angle, but because Mikoto was also turned toward Fugaku it looked like he was _behind_ her. As if his parents were standing with their backs to him.

Turning the light on, he got up and walked silently down to his studio on the first floor of his house. The blacked out windows that prevented light from entering made the room seem dark even when the lamps were on. However, he turned the lights off and switched on a special red light he used for developing pictures. He had to see that boy's face again.

An hour later he was back in his bedroom with several 8x10 photographs held in his hands. The problem was that the photograph was not one picture, but two. The first picture was of Fugaku, Mikoto and Sasuke. The second was of Itachi. He couldn't look at it and see one picture, one family, no matter how hard he tried.

He had heard stories over the years, legends really, about ghosts appearing in photographs. Loved ones who refused to leave their families behind and would appear as white blobs on the film. However, as he looked into Itachi's eyes he was struck bow how much the boy looked like a ghost. His haunted expression that was filled with sorrow, disappointment, hate and fear. His mouth that was set in a straight line and held tightly closed. His stance that was slightly bent over, as if something heavy was weighing him down. His location in the photo away from his parents and brother, as if he didn't exist. His parent's failure to place him between them next to Sasuke, as if they had forgotten he existed. As if he were dead and haunting his family, showing himself only for the photograph.

"Fugaku," The photographer mumbled as he stared into Itachi's haunted eyes, "what have you done to your son?"

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The mission was taking them up into Lightening country. Itachi's team was tasked with finding and eliminating a group of rogue ninjas that had been attacking and killing merchants. One team of regular Konoha ninjas had engaged the group two weeks earlier and been wiped out. It was also rumored that a team of Cloud ninjas had also been killed by the same group.

"It's highly likely we will run into Cloud black ops while hunting the rogues." Itachi stated as the five ANBU walked down a road in Lightening. "We should be prepared."

"Should we kill them? We could lie in wait for them to arrive and take them out before we grab the rogues." A man with a dog mask asked in a strong voice.

"No, Masanori. We will not engage Cloud." Itachi said calmly.

"But it's a great opportunity!" Toshiya said eagerly. He had his sheep mask placed on top of his head.

"Nevertheless we are not going to do it."

"But…" Masanori tried to argue, but closed his mouth when Itachi turned around and looked at him. Dark chakra emanated from the boy, causing Masanori to step back in surprise.

"You would do well to remember who is in command, Masanori. Out here, my word is the only law you follow. Remember that." Itachi turned around and continued walking down the road. There was only one word he had to say about his new rank: "annoying". He was given the basic specifications for a mission, but it was up to him to determine the strategy. To make things worse, Danzou had insisted on five-man teams instead of the usual three-man teams that were traditionally used. He liked the "intimidation" factor of five masked ANBU conveyed when moving through the village and countryside.

The new responsibility wasn't difficult to deal with, really. His intellect and fighting skills made the missions fairly easy. The problem was Masanori. The man was in his mid-twenties and very bitter about his Chuunin status. Every attempt at promotion to Jounin had, as he put it, been "sabotaged". He had even gone so far as to warn Itachi that he would not allow him to stand in his way of promotion. The man was very skilled, but his maturity needed work.

The other four weren't much trouble at all. Toshiya was also in his mid-twenties, but unlike Masanori he was genial and eager to help. He loved to tease and unfortunately the serious Masanori was his favorite target. Itachi silently wondered how long it would be before Masanori decided he couldn't take anymore and attacked. To make things worse, the two were cousins and looked so much alike they could be brothers. Tall, muscular with shoulder-length black hair and brown eyes.

Yuri was on his team, something he was grateful for. The girl was, of course, very skilled with her earth jutsus and her expertise with plants was a phenomenal thing to watch. The other girl was a year older than Yuri. Iria was a water-element user who jumped into practically every lake and large pond they passed. There was no shortage of fish for their meals when she was around. Although, it seemed that everyone except Iria was starting to get sick of eating it. Her long blue hair made Itachi wonder if she was related somehow to Kisame, but it was unlikely.

A strong scent suddenly filled the air.

"Blood!" Yuri hissed quietly. The five ANBU quickly used jutsus to blend into the background as they made their way forward.

"Gruesome!" Toshiya dropped his jutsu. The only thing in the area was a wagon full of cloth bolts and four badly mangled bodies.

Itachi walked up and looked closer, "They've only been dead a couple hours. It appears we have finally found the targets."

"All the money is still here. About a million ryou." Yuri held up a bag of money.

Iria looked in the bag. "Why kill a merchant and leave the money behind?"

"Who cares? Let's just get going before they kill more people." Masanori said angrily. Itachi had to agree with that and signaled for them to run.

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A few short miles down the road they found their targets already dead and surrounded by four Cloud ninja. One of whom Itachi recognized from his Bingo book. He signaled for his detachment to stand still as he walked forward a few feet.

"Raikage, I would never have expected to see you here." Itachi spoke through his rat mask. A large, muscular black man walked forward, stopping five feet in front of Itachi. Their difference in size made Itachi look even smaller than he was.

"You are the captain of this rag-tag group?" The Raikage said confidently.

"I am. We came up here to target _them_." Itachi nodded in the direction of the corpses. "It appears we wasted our time." Itachi answered calmly.

"So it seems. What is your name, kid?"

"Rat." Itachi answered, activating his Sharingan.

The Raikage blinked once and then looked closer at the boys mask. He could see the red eyes glittering through the holes. "An Uchiha." The ninja behind him tensed and two pulled out kunai.

Itachi smirked, "Does that bother you?" His own team remained motionless, knowing that if they did anything without clearance from their captain they would meet the business end of his Genjutsu.

"Not at all. These guys were hardly a challenge, but you have quite a reputation." A big smile appeared on his face, "Itachi Uchiha."

Itachi would have been surprised the man recognized except for one thing: he was the only teenage boy in the Uchiha clan. Figuring out his identity was a no-brainer, really, and for a person who attained the rank of Kage… well it would have been disappointing if he hadn't recognized him.

Itachi lifted his mask and placed it on top of his head. "Tell your people to back off." He turned his head slightly and looked back at his team, "You do the same."

Both Stone and Konoha nins fell back. The sparse forest around them contained few trees and lots of rocks and the two ninja teams found similar spots to perch about a quarter mile away. Tension was high as they waited for the Raikage and Itachi to begin. However, the two stood staring at each other.

"If I win, you will answer a question for me." Itachi finally spoke, his voice authoritative.

"Humph. Sounds like a good bet. Then so be it. If I win you will answer one of my questions, and I have a good one, kid." The Raikage gave a hearty laugh. "I'll have you know, though, that I have been working out constantly and my diet is nothing short of amazing!"

Itachi looked the man over. His physique was definitely that of a close-range fighter and he was obviously very sure of his abilities. Kage were usually the most powerful ninja in their villages. However, the man talked _way_ too much.

The Raikage jumped forward, forcing Itachi to jump the left. He quickly formed signs for a phoenix fire jutsu and shot multiple flames at the big man. The Raikage punched them out of the way, sending some of them back at Itachi. Dodging them, the boy used a transportation jutsu to appear behind the Raikage and kick at the back of his knees. The Kage jumped straight up, causing Itachi to kick into thin air. Landing two feet away he swung his arm around, also connecting with thin air when Itachi ducked. However, when the boy ducked he was able to grab the Raikage's leg and he pulled up on it, causing the man to stumble back. He almost fell, but at the last minute he used a substitution jutsu and Itachi found himself holding a log.

Looking around Itachi did not see the Raikage. He used his Sharingan to look for chakra sources and jumped straight up into the air, landing six feet away. He jumped again, constantly looking around. If the man had used an Earth jutsu he could be hiding underground, waiting to jump up and grab him. Itachi jumped up into a tree, hanging onto the trunk with one hand and using his feet for leverage. The branches were too weak to stand on. He finally saw something that was out of place. There was an extra tree next to where he had jumped.

Itachi returned to the ground and used another fireball jutsu. A huge twenty-foot diameter fireball shot out at the tree and it disappeared.

The Raikage appeared directly in front of Itachi again. The boy looked into his eyes and immediately caught the man in a Genjutsu. He started to jump around, thinking he was fighting Itachi, however after fifteen seconds of this he suddenly stopped, brought his hands together and yelled "Kai!" The illusion was dispelled and he laughed. "Very good, Itachi. No one has managed to catch me in a Genjutsu since I was a Genin. You are to be commended."

Itachi smirked, "I accept your compliment." He quickly jumped out of the way again when the Kage appeared behind him and kicked forward. The man seemed to be using only Taijutsu. Itachi could only guess that it was because he wanted to spar and not actually fight. However, he couldn't guess why.

Jumping over to where Itachi was, the Raikage started up a barrage of kicks and hits that Itachi copied blow for blow. Neither was getting the upper hand. The spectators watched the action with wide eyes. The two were moving so fast that all they could see was a blur. After five minutes they jumped apart from each other. The spectators got another shock when they saw that neither fighter was out of breath.

"Very good. Our Bingo book says you are a master of Taijutsu." The Raikage laughed.

"You are very kind, Lord Kage." Itachi said politely.

"So. We call this a draw. We answer each other's questions and as long as you and your friends are out of Lightening by this time tomorrow we won't harass you."

"Hmm. Since our mission is a bust, that sounds like a fair deal." Itachi was really curious now; the Raikage seemed more interested in playing that protecting his country from enemy ninja.

"Come closer, Itachi. My question is not for other ears." The big man beckoned for Itachi move next to him as he sat down on a fallen log. Itachi sat a couple feet away. "You go first."

Itachi nodded, then paused for a second before speaking as he considered his words. "Who requested the hit on Rumiko Uchiha?"

"It doesn't surprise me you asked that. The request came from within Konoha. We dealt with an intermediary named Kousuke Egawa. You'll have to track him down to learn more. Now, you answer my question." The Raikage dropped his voice and Itachi looked intently at the man. "My intelligence says you are to be named the next Hokage."

Itachi fought hard not to react, but the Raikage noticed and gave a short laugh.

"I would not mind forming an alliance with you at helm. Anyone but the Senju or Hyuuga. So, what do you think, would you reciprocate?"

Itachi was struck with the man's apparent honesty and openness. He wasn't treating him like a kid, but an equal. But how was he to answer the question? He had been told by Danzou that he was Hokage material, but he had taken it as nothing more than a compliment. However, it was possible The Raikage was digging for information about the Uchiha coup. Although, if that was the case why would he mention Itachi's name and not Fugaku's?

"I am not aware of such an honor, but alliances are much better than war and I would be grateful to form as many as possible." Itachi hoped his statement wasn't too generic and would satisfy the Raikage. He was curious, though, about the current alliance that he thought existed between Cloud and Konoha. Did the Hokage lie, and there was no alliance? Or perhaps the alliance was on paper only and the Raikage wished to have a true peaceful relationship with his enemies?

"Glad to hear it, Itachi. You five better get moving it's a long trek to the border." He smiled.

Itachi stood up and looked the man in the eye again, sizing him up. 'He really thinks I'm going to be the next Hokage. That's what all this was about. Did he know my team would be sent out after the rogues? Was this meeting a set-up?' Itachi's thoughts were full of questions, but instead of asking them he thanked the Raikage for the sparring session and returned to his team. Twenty hours later they crossed the border into Fire country.

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"Kousuke Egawa." Fugaku repeated the name Itachi had just passed on. "Do you know anyone with that name?"

"No. I looked in the city register and the person doesn't exist." Itachi answered quietly. It was evening and they were in the meeting room. Conversations had to be quiet when Sasuke was home so he wouldn't hear anything. The young boy tended to be a light sleeper.

"Okay. I'll start investigating. Thank-you, Itachi. Hopefully this will lead to the source and I can put some of these rumors to bed." Fugaku stood up. "How are things going in ANBU? Is Danzou training ROOT to counter the coup?"

"No. He appears to be doing nothing." Itachi replied calmly.

"Odd. The ninja corp has been instructed to beef up their jutsus. Perhaps Danzou is arrogantly assuming his forces are already good enough?" Fugaku theorized.

"Possible. We do a lot of training already and the missions an ANBU undertakes is easily two to three times more than a regular ninja. That equates to a lot of experience." Itachi also stood up and walked to the door, opening it.

"Itachi, is… there anything else you want to say?" Fugaku asked hesitantly. He had a feeling his son was keeping something from him.

Itachi paused, thinking about whether he wanted to answer the question or not. "No. Nothing else."

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Returning to his room, Itachi lay down on the bed but was startled when a frog jumped on his stomach. Looking down he saw the frog was staring intently up at him. Tied to its back was a small scroll.

"Oh God." Itachi sighed. He had completely forgotten about Jiraiya. Or hoped he had forgotten. Untying the scroll he opened it.

"Tomorrow. Where we last talked." Was all the message said. No time for the meeting or even a hint about what they were going to discuss. He went over his schedule in his mind and realized the only free time he had the next day was 7am. Well, if Jiraiya wasn't there then he could go take a long walk off of a short pier for all Itachi cared. He reached over and shut off the lamp.

"Itachi?" Sasuke's voice came from the other side of the door about a minute later.

"Come in." Itachi sighed, switching his lamp back on.

Sasuke walked in carrying a notebook. "I'm stuck on this one problem for school tomorrow. Can you help me?"

"It's midnight. Can't you just skip it?" Itachi asked, smiling.

"No! I could never do that! I have to be number one in my class!" Sasuke tried to sound horrified by the thought of leaving his homework undone, but instead he yawned.

"Okay, let me see." Itachi looked at it for a couple minutes. It was a geometry problem, but something was odd about it. "The problem was written incorrectly." He wrote the problem out on a piece of paper. "Give this to your teacher tomorrow. This is how it should have been asked. Can you solve this now?"

"Yeah! The answer is 5 feet." Sasuke smiled, relieved. "You're so smart! Maybe you should be a teacher someday."

Itachi laughed, "Who knows? You better get to bed. If mother or father find out your still up there'll be hell to pay." The boy ran out into the hallway without looking and a couple seconds later he heard his brother's door slide shut. He smiled as he shut his lamp off again.

Sasuke seemed to have a calming effect on him. He remembered years ago he would wake up from a nightmare and go to Sasuke's room and watch the baby sleep. It would calm his mind and sometimes he would curl up on the floor next to the crib and go back to sleep. Somewhere along the line he had stopped doing that. But talking to his little brother still lightened his mood.

Closing his eyes Itachi wondered why he even bothered to sleep. His nightmares had been near-nightly occurrences ever since Shisui had died, but he told no one, although Kisame had guessed and even confronted him about it one evening after Itachi had woken up for the fourth time while the shark-man had been keeping watch. He had blown if off and then offered to begin his own watch an hour early. Kisame had laughed and fallen asleep almost immediately.

Itachi had the same recurring dreams he had experience since he was a small child in addition to new ones that would come only once or twice never to be repeated. He also had started to dream about Shisui a lot. The dreams were mainly replaying memories of when they were children and a couple times he had woken up with tears in his eyes. Rumiko had begun to visit him in his dreams as well. She was wandering around her now-empty house looking for her children, only to find them in their cribs with kunai's in their hearts. She would then look him in the eye and start to yell, but he couldn't make out the words.

The alarm clock went off at 6am and Itachi glanced over at it. He wondered if he had been awake all night. His mind felt like it had been thinking for hours. Standing up he walked to the bathroom to shower and get ready, popping a soldier pill as entered the hallway.

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The training field was empty in the mid-April morning. The sun was just coming over the horizon as Itachi leaned up against a wooden post and closed his eyes. The soldier pill had woken him up and made him alert, but he still wanted to go back to bed and sleep.

"Itachi, my boy! Glad you came!" Jiraiya walked up to Itachi, giving him a big smile.

Itachi opened one eye, then closed it again. "What do you want?"

"Are you sleepy?" Jiraiya asked.

"No. I like standing around with my eyes closed." Itachi opened them and sighed.

"It's been a year, Itachi. I had meant to speak with a couple times, but you were gone when I arrived." He sat down on the ground, even though it was very wet with dew. "I see you haven't weathered the last twelve months very well." He paused when Itachi frowned at him. "Others can't tell, but I can. Itachi, I know you don't agree with your father's plans, but I want to warn you not to do anything rash. Sarutobi is working on a compromise, so take heart."

Itachi pushed himself away from the post and started walking away. He was tired of hearing about the coup. Jiraiya stood up and watched him.

"Itachi!" He yelled angrily. "Come back, I'm not finished."

The boy turned around and glared, his Sharingan activated almost immediately. Jiraiya looked at him with concern, then walked over and grabbed Itachi's shoulders. "When was the last time you slept, Itachi? And I mean a full nights sleep, not the off and on stuff you get on missions."

"Never." He replied honestly.

Jiraiya opened his mouth then closed it. The look of concern that crossed his face annoyed Itachi and he tried to step back. The sage's grip was too tight, though, and he couldn't move. "Like I said I need to talk to you, and this, apparently is the only way to do it." He took a deep breath. "Sarutobi thinks very highly of you, Itachi. I'm not fully convinced you are everything he thinks you are, but I trust his judgment. Personally, when I look at you I see a lost little boy who was forced to grow up too fast and take on more responsibility than he was ready for."

It was Itachi's turn to be dumbfounded and he stared up at the tall man in shock. He didn't have a clue where this conversation was going and thought, perhaps, that maybe he had just been insulted. But the words, while very blunt and to the point, were almost the same thing Shisui had told him, except in a more polite form. He had traded his childhood to become a ninja. He would go off on missions and assassinate targets instead of watching after-school cartoons with his brother. He would die while fighting Madara instead of marrying Sheeta. It was all stuff he knew already, he had repeated it to himself thousands of times. It was fact, the way it was, the way it would always be.

"You say that like I have a choice in the matter. I am capable of great responsibility and I take my duties seriously. I defend the village and the people inside of it with my life. I have to do it, or none of us will have a home. If you think I am lost, then perhaps you ought to quit your running around and stick around to help the village instead of avoiding it. I will die in service to this village Jiraiya, what about you?" Itachi's voice was calm, yet still managed to convey emotion. As he spoke Jiraiya's grip tightened.

"Well said." The sage was quiet for a couple minutes as he considered Itachi's words. "You do not understand my lifestyle, Itachi. I travel around gathering information, not just to write masterpieces of fiction. It's a hard life, one I wouldn't wish on most people, but to me it's rewarding. A lot of that information is passed on to Konoha and they use it for intelligence dissemination or to aid in missions. I am sorry if I offended you. It appears you are more than I first thought."

"I apologize if I offended you, master Jiraiya. I reacted badly to your statement." Itachi tried to pull back again, but the sage still held his arms tight. "Danzou is expecting me." He finally said.

"Danzou can go to hell." Jiraiya answered.

"Yes, he will, but probably not before he chews me out for being late."

Jiraiya released his hold, "You do have quite a way with words for someone who rarely speaks."

"So you called me here only because Sarutobi said something good about me?" Itachi's arms were sore where Jiraiya had gripped them, but he resisted the urge to rub them. "Despite your words of trust concerning the Hokage, you sound remarkably like a liar."

Jiraiya scowled, "I am watching my sensei's back."

"Why? He seems perfectly capable of watching it himself. Hence the discussions he has been having with my father."

"Fine. Let's get to the point then."

"Finally." Itachi's face became emotionless and he stood up straight, arms at his side.

"Why are you hanging out with that group Akatsuki?" Jiraiya pulled himself up to his full height and looked down on Itachi with a critical eye.

"Ah! So that's what this is about." Itachi smirked.

"Answer the question, Itachi." Jiraiya growled.

"Konoha is in no danger while I am with them."

"So you are playing the double agent, then, with your father?" Jiraiya had a sour look on his face.

"I said I would defend Konoha with my life." Itachi finally turned off his Sharingan. "Is that so hard to believe?"

"Keep me informed, Itachi."

"I realize you are Naruto's godfather. However I do not feel his best interests are being served by you wandering the countryside. You need to move in with him."

"I can't do that. I can't raise a kid. I realize Akatsuki is collecting jinchuuriki, but Sarutobi can protect him."

"You speak to me of responsibility, yet you run away from your own."

Jiraiya sighed. "Call it what you want. I believe I have accomplished here what I set out to. It seems Sarutobi's trust in you is well placed, after all. I would appreciate it if you did not mention this conversation to anyone."

"I wasn't planning on it." Itachi said plainly.

Itachi used a transportation jutsu to disappear from the training ground. A wisp of twisting smoke rose from where he had been standing only a moment earlier.

"Are you convinced now, Jiraiya?" Sarutobi stepped out from behind a collection of bushes. He was wearing black pants and a black long-sleeve shirt.

"Mostly. Yeah, I guess I am. The extent to which he has gone to protect this village blows my mind. But at the same time I feel he is unstable."

"He is. That cannot be argued. However, he may be the best way to end the conflict. And I intend on standing beside him for as long as possible."

"Homura and Koharu will never agree." Jiraiya sighed again.

"I will have to convince them." Sarutobi also sighed and Jiraiya was struck with how old the man suddenly looked.

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**Next week: I guess you could call it the beginning of the end – it gets pretty dark from here on out. **

**I updated my profile with some chapter information and the planned story description for the sequel if you are interested.**

**Please review! It gives me something to read on these cold, dark, snowy evenings, and it makes me happy o.O**


	60. Chapter 60 Countdown

**Last week – Itachi ran into the Raikage in Lightening country and sparred with him. He also found out the name of the person who contracted Rumiko's assassination.**

**Thanks for the reviews and fav's**

**Disclaimer – Kishimoto owns Naruto**

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**Chapter 60 – Countdown**

"Shouldn't you be in Mist right now? Didn't you say you were returning in mid-June?" Konan gazed intently at the masked man sitting across from her. The large room she, Pein and Madara were currently sitting in was fairly relaxing with its large reclining chairs and the massive curtain that blocked off drafts from the rest of the building. For some reason Pein had not wanted to build a wall and the curtain was a compromise when Konan complained about the cold breezes that swept through the large room.

"Humph." Madara didn't particularly want to talk about this subject, but he realized Konan and by proxy, Pein, would be concerned on some level by the events currently taking place in the island nation. "Zabuza will be attacking in a few hours. I'm sure he doesn't need my help to lose."

Konan snorted, "He doesn't need your help to win either. He has amassed quite a large army of ninjas."

"Konan, it's none of your business." Madara finally stated plainly.

Pein turned his head. "It is."

"Do you _really_ think he might win? I have my own shinobi fighting as well. There is no way anyone could go up against them and win. Mist is not a pushover. Zabuza knows that, yet his judgment is clouded."

"You were forced a few years ago to modify your training program by that man. Do you think things will stay the same after he attacks this time?" Pein's question was asked in a monotone.

"The training methods have not changed; they have merely been pushed into the background. Only certain students participate. The top shinobi are chosen in this way. A shinobi who does not know what it is like to kill is not really a shinobi and is useless to me." Madara explained calmly.

"Zabuza will fail. He will fall from grace and those who feel indebted to him for ending the academy's 'final exam' will see him for what he really is." Madara paused. "I believe I have explained this before."

"And what of Kisame? Why keep your identity secret from one of your own swordsmen? His personal business keeps him out of action almost as much as Itachi." Konan asked.

"Kisame is one of my most loyal ninjas. I'll admit it is unfair to keep my identity from him, but I believe in the long run it will actually help him with his 'personal business', as you call it. He may be distracted, but I believe pairing him with Itachi was a good plan. He is providing some adult guidance to the boy."

Konan was puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Madara laughed, "There is more to be a ninja than fighting. Itachi's personal development never happened. Or happened very slowly. He needs someone to help with that now that Shisui is dead. Kisame was quite taken with the boy when he met him a few years ago."

"Hmm. If you say so. Although Sasori seems to have also taken a liking to his new partner as well. Deidara messed up a mission the other day, badly, and Sasori defended him. Not something I would have expected from him." Pein added, smirking.

"Now that does surprise me," Madara laughed, "but then again they are both artists and artists tend be an odd sort anyway. I have a feeling Sasori took care of the problem though. That's another good team. Deidara needs discipline and Sasori certainly won't hold back in that regard."

"So, when will you be returning to Mist?" Konan returned to the original subject.

"In three days."

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"Itachi?" Mikoto stood at her son's door and called to him. It was late morning and she had felt his chakra signature as he materialized in his room.

Itachi opened his door and looked up at his mother. He was still wearing his ANBU uniform, although he had removed his mask.

"I heard a rumor while I was at the market this morning. Can you check it out?" Mikoto was very worried, if the rumors were true…

"What is it, mother?" Itachi asked calmly.

"I heard there was a coup in Mist. Can you find out if Aya is okay?"

Itachi blinked his eyes in surprise, then remembered Kisame mentioning that Zabuza was gathering shinobi to overthrow the Mist government. He had completely put it out of his mind. "I'll see what I can find out."

"Thank-you." Mikoto smiled in relief. "Would you like something to eat? Lunch is still a couple hours away, but I can fix you something if you would like."

"No, I want to take a bath and relax a little. I'll eat when it's ready." Itachi gave his mother a small smile before closing the door.

Itachi opened the hidden compartment in the floor and pulled a small bracelet. He took a deep breath and let it out. His mother worried constantly about Aya. She was afraid of what Madara might do to her.

"_I wondered when you would contact me."_ Madara's voice seemed reserved, a little lighter than usual.

"Then you know what I'm going to ask." Itachi stated.

"_Aya is dead, Itachi. My house was razed in the coup; fire consumed it with the people trapped inside."_ His words were sorrowful.

Itachi was shocked by the news and didn't say anything for a couple minutes. "Her body?"

"_Her new friends buried it here. I have no plans to return it."_

"Her family should take precedence." Itachi defended.

"_Too bad. I'm not going against her friends wishes. Too many people died here Itachi, consider their feelings."_ Madara sounded tired.

"How do I know you are telling the truth?"

"_Itachi, truly I have no time to argue this with you. I am in Mist right now putting things back together and will be pre-occupied for a while. Give her family the news but do not tell them where she was."_ Madara cut the communication.

Itachi sat back against the wall. Now what? Mikoto would not take the news well, and neither would the others. However, Itachi couldn't get over the suspicion that Madara was lying. Standing up he walked into the living room where his parents were relaxing, watching a movie.

"I spoke with Madara." He hadn't felt very close to his parents in a very, very long time, but suddenly the idea of giving them such bad news saddened him. They looked at him, concern on their faces as they waited for him to continue speaking. "He said his residence was burned to the ground and Aya was unable to escape and died."

"No!" Mikoto stood up clasped her hands together.

"Mother, when was the last time you were with him?" Itachi asked quietly.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Mikoto yelled.

"Answer the question, Mikoto." Fugaku had a feeling he knew what Itachi was getting at.

Mikoto looked at her husband and blushed. In her current emotional state she couldn't stop it. "It was… after Shisui died. I guess two years."

"I spoke with him a few months ago. He wanted to keep Aya for himself. I told him he could do what he wanted but the children must be raised in Konoha. It didn't go over very well with him." Fugaku added.

"Fugaku! How could you!" Mikoto's anger overwhelmed her and she threw herself at her husband. Fugaku grabbed her arms and pinned her to the wall.

"Control yourself, Mikoto. Do you really think anything I said would have mattered to him?" He released her arms and she wiped her eyes.

"I'm… sorry. You're right. He wouldn't give a shit. But Fugaku! She's only fifteen." She grabbed Fugaku's shirt and buried her head in his chest.

"I would offer to go to Mist and look, but it would be pointless." Itachi added, "If he wants us to think she is dead we will find no evidence of her anywhere."

"You are right Itachi. It would be pointless." Fugaku sighed and wrapped his arms around Mikoto. "Perhaps I am being overly optimistic, but I find it hard to believe that even Madara would be with such a young girl. He might just be keeping her to himself until she gets older."

"I'm sure he wants more children. He seemed bitter about the deaths of his own, as well as protective of Sasuke." Itachi said quietly.

"So what are we going to tell the others?" Mikoto asked, her voice muffled in her husbands shirt.

Fugaku sighed and closed his eyes. Loosing another child would break Toshiro and Kisa. Aya was their heir and they had high hopes for her. He needed Toshiro to help before and after the coup. And he discovered he wanted to protect his friend from more sorrow. It was a new feeling and he reacted by tightening his embrace around his wife.

"We will say nothing for now. After the coup we will find a way to confirm or deny Madara's claim. If she is still alive we will also return her to Konoha." Fugaku's words were confident. "The others don't know where she was sent so they have to reason to be concerned when they hear about the coup in Mist so everything should carry on as normal."

"Thank-you, Fugaku." Mikoto smiled and closed her eyes, listening to steady beat of her husband's heart against the side of her face.

Itachi gave them a small smile. "Good idea. It would be unfortunate to have a funeral only to find out she is alive and kicking. Not to mention embarrassing."

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Opening the bag of potato chips, Itachi emptied them on the grave then lit some incense. Putting his hands together he bowed his head and prayed for his friend's peaceful repose in the after-life.

The evening was bright with a full moon and thousands of stars. It was close to the hour that Shisui had drowned himself, two years earlier. Itachi had felt that it was important to be here at exactly the time he had died. He sat and looked at the grave, as if waiting for something to happen. Pulling out another stick of incense he lit it and set it next to the first.

"If she is with you, this is for Aya. Tell her we will have her funeral later and it's okay to be at rest." Itachi had heard about spirits that wandered the earth because they had not received funerary rights. While he didn't believe in ghosts, he still felt the need to appease them.

The white, three foot tall grave stone had a two foot wide shelf at the bottom to hold the incense and offerings. Beneath the moon and stars it almost seemed to glow. Itachi raised his finger and traced the kanji that made up Shisui's name. He remembered the words an elder had spoken to him nine years earlier on the day he was named his father's heir: _"Lord Itachi, my name is not important. It is a word written on a tombstone then unwritten by time. Your only concern is the future."_ He wondered how long it would be before the carved characters disappeared.

"When they disappear, I will return to re-carve them." Itachi swore to the empty graveyard, but realized how empty the promise was as he would probably be dead by then.

An ant appeared and grabbed a small fragment of one of the chips. Itachi watched as it disappeared into a small bush. Even in a place of death, life flourished, even if it was just a hungry ant. However, he did not bring the food for the insects to eat. Using his kunai he dug up a bit of the grave and deposited the rest of the chips in the small hole.

"That's better. Wouldn't want you miss out on your favorite food." Itachi gave a small smile. "I haven't been able to help much, Shisui. Sarutobi is trying to talk to father but the council isn't helping. I'm also learning new techniques to use with the Mangekyou Sharingan you gave me. I will stop the coup. I will save the village and our clan. Your sacrifice will be worth it, Shisui. But…" He couldn't say it, he couldn't tell his best friend that he wished he was still alive because if he was he wouldn't have the power necessary to complete his task. And it was important that Shisui's death should mean something.

Laying down on the cold ground Itachi put his hand over the buried potato chips and closed his eyes, quickly falling asleep.

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"Itachi? Wake up." A voice echoed through his mind and he felt something stroking his hair. Opening his eyes he saw Toshiro bending over him, a concerned look on his face. Kisa was standing behind him, wiping her face with a tissue. "Are you okay? You didn't sleep out here all night did you?"

Itachi sat up and looked at his watch. He had slept for almost seven hours straight without waking up. He hadn't done that in years.

Kisa bent down and put her hand on his shoulder. "You don't look so good. Say something, Itachi."

"I'm…" he sighed. "I stayed here all night. I'm not sure I meant to, but I fell asleep." Itachi stood up and brushed his clothes off, curious about why he hadn't sensed the two shinobi approaching him.

"I'm sure Shisui appreciated it, but you look really tired." Kisa smiled at him.

"Yeah," Itachi stretched, "I can't seem to wake up. Unfortunately I have to get to work now. It was nice seeing you two." He turned around and left the graveyard, he knew Toshiro and Kisa would want to be alone with their son.

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The stairs that wound their way under Konoha were endless, it seemed, but Itachi knew where they ended. He had descended all the way to the bottom on several occasions to be met by a strange clan with all black eyes. They were friendly, but wary and he always kept his visits short.

This day, however, he descended only as far and Danzou's office. The old man was very serious and grim and spent several minutes watching Itachi, as if sizing him up. Itachi looked straight at his commander without emotion. He never flinched or diverted his eyes.

"Itachi," Danzou finally spoke, his formidable tone belied the serious nature of what was to come, "I have a mission for you. It is the most important mission any ANBU in Konoha has ever undertaken."

Itachi nodded his head once to indicate he was listening. His face became serious as he prepared to listen closely to what came next.

"It is top secret and you must never speak about it to anyone. Is that understood?"

"Yes." Itachi said calmly.

"The coup being planned by the Uchiha clan must be stopped. It cannot be allowed to happen. Should a force as powerful as the Uchiha start a civil war it will affect the entire Fire country. We are the defense for Fire country and if we cannot mobilize to protect them, who will? Stone, Cloud, Mist, as well as other smaller countries will take the opportunity to attack. A fourth ninja war would result and tens of thousands of civilians and ninjas will die. All because of one man's pride. Fugaku Uchiha. " Danzou paused and looked at his subordinate. Itachi's stony expression revealed no hint of what he was thinking and Danzou pressed on.

"Therefore, Itachi, your mission is to assassinate Fugaku Uchiha and the rest of the Uchiha clan." Danzou finished speaking and watched as Itachi slowly reacted.

The "mission", as Danzou put it, was unthinkable. Itachi's eyes opened wide in shock and he reached up to grip the edge of the table, as if steadying himself from falling. "How… c…can I d…do such a th…thing?" He asked, stuttering in his shock. He knew how he was reacting, and how bad it must look to his superior, but he hadn't been able to stop himself.

"The lives of a few will save hundreds of thousands of lives Itachi. Think about it. There are two million people in Fire country and forty thousand in Konoha. The other countries also have civilians who will die in the war. Go up into the village and look into the eyes of the children and their parents and grandparents. Go the neighboring towns and look into the eyes of the farmers and merchants, the cooks and waitresses, the innkeepers and maids and tell them that their deaths are inconsequential. That the Uchiha deserve to live so that they can die." Danzou banged his hand down on his desk, causing Itachi to flinch. He yelled with more emotion than he had shown in years, "Can you do that Itachi? Can you turn your back on them knowing the solution was simple, knowing you could have saved them? Can you go to your grave knowing the great sin you commit by walking away from this mission?"

Itachi stared wide-eyed at Danzou. "Sarutobi is talking with them…"

"Inconsequential." Danzou sliced his hand through the air to make his point. "He has been discussing this for over a year now and Fugaku refuses to give in. He is arrogantly putting his own needs before the needs of the village. Climbing up a mountain of bodies to reach his position of power. Once attained, the view will be nothing more than a field of corpses. And I think you know what that looks like."

Itachi gulped. He knew. He had seen it, all the bodies, thousands of them. Dead, bloated, forgotten. Never to be buried they were probably still there, white bones bared to the empty skies. And the Kage of that country's Ninja village was Madara. Another Uchiha. Had he known what the Daimyou was planning when he sent his Shinobi to that village? Itachi felt a cold chill up his spine as a thought entered his mind, 'Did Madara set the whole thing up? Was he trying to wipe out the rebel factions, undermine the Daimyou, or both?' He remembered that Kisame had killed the Daimyou right before going rogue. Was that also done on Madara's orders? Was he given the same type of mission Itachi was facing himself? Kill and then leave forever.

All those bodies… Itachi couldn't get the image out of his mind. The smell… the faces… It haunted his waking hours and his dreams, refusing to leave him alone. However, another image entered his mind at that moment. That of his little brother laughing, the Go and Shogi clubs at the temple cheerfully playing games and gossiping, his Aunt happily sweeping the steps of the bakery she had purchased after moving to Konoha. He had many happy memories of his extended family, something he had never realized until now.

Itachi finally got a grip on himself and made a declaration, "I will do nothing until talks have run out."

Danzou considered the boy's statement. He realized that if he pushed any harder he would scare Itachi away. "Very well. But know that if you wait too long the blood of innocents will stain your hands. You are the only person in the world who can do this. Only an Uchiha can take out another Uchiha."

"Understood." Itachi said quietly. "I understand."

"I hope you do. And Itachi, as a reward for this act of selflessness you may remain alive, but you must leave the village and never return. And I ask that you father no children."

Itachi's eyes turned dark as he looked down at the floor. He was going to lose everything, but the others… the people of Fire country… would be safe. A few hundred lives in return for millions. It was worth it, wasn't it? "Understood."

"This is your last mission, Itachi. I will be giving you no more work from here on out. I expect you to train hard and succeed. You may leave." Danzou said firmly.

Itachi stood up slowly and exited the room.

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By the time Itachi reached the forest beyond the village walls he was shaking so bad he could barely walk. It was one thing to kill his father and his immediate subordinates, but everyone? That was too much to ask. He dropped to the ground and buried his head in the grass and dead leaves then yelled as loud as he could before breaking down sobbing in frustration, anger, fear, and most of all disappointment.

Three hours later he looked up from where he was laying on the ground and realized he was in the same spot he had run to as a four-year-old child, injured and crying.

"You've come full circle, Itachi. Only this time there won't be anyone coming to save you." He spoke to himself as he sat up and wiped his face on his sleeve. He laid back down on the ground and looked at the bush he had hidden under all those years ago.

"It was all a lie. My future never existed. I was never more than a pawn. Those people, my 'family' who pretended to give me choices did nothing but take them away. They took Obito, then Kagura, Saiyu, Kentaro, Shisui, Rumiko…" he realized he could name too many dead people and stopped talking.

Time passed but Itachi didn't move. The sun set late and the evening took a long time to come. He watched passively as the stars appeared over his head, one by one they twinkled silently in the inky black sky.

The next morning he stood up and walked to a nearby river to wash up and drink some water. He realized, in passing, that it was Sasuke's birthday. He had saved his mother and brother's lives that day by running to the hospital to get Kagura. And now he would take them away. It was also the day Shisui was buried.

Itachi had curtailed the amount of time he spent with Sasuke in the last two years. He had refused to teach him any ninja techniques and only spoke with him occasionally. It was hard, he loved his little brother and wanted to be with him as much as possible, but he had to stay away. Sasuke deserved to have as normal childhood as possible and that wouldn't happen if Itachi was around. He knew he wasn't normal, he was too good at being a shinobi, too focused. If he were to take Sasuke under his wing the boy would end up being a replica of himself, and that would break Itachi's heart.

He knew Sasuke didn't understand why he was being ignored. It was hard on him and he saw his brother's sad eyes every time he looked at him. But he steeled his heart and maintained his course. He had considered explaining it to the boy, but when he considered what exactly he would say he knew his brother wouldn't understand. Sasuke had never gone through the things he had and would accuse Itachi of overreacting or possibly even making stuff up. Therefore, he kept his mouth shut and remained alone in his own house. What made it worse was that he knew Sasuke was just as lonely as he was.

But none of that mattered now. Sasuke would die anyway. Everyone would. Then the only person who would be lonely was himself.

"What would Shisui say if he knew?" Itachi couldn't answer the question.

Itachi slowly made his way back to the village. He ate something from a food stand, he wasn't sure what, and made his way back to the Uchiha compound. The people he passed smiled at him and he ignored them. He couldn't help it. Every time he looked into their faces he saw skulls. To him they were the walking dead.

Entering his house he sat down on the step in the entryway to remove his shoes.

"Itachi?" Mikoto was there again. Always checking on his welfare, offering him food or washing his clothes.

Itachi didn't answer, just sat motionless with his back to her.

"A messenger from the Hokage came by yesterday and he needs to speak with you. It was urgent. He came by seven times. What's wrong? Are you okay?" Mikoto's voice was full of worry, but Itachi ignored it. He nodded once to indicate he had heard her and walked back out of the house.

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The boy Sarutobi saw walk into his office was nothing more than an animated puppet. Or at least that was the impression he gave. It was obvious he hadn't slept and from the state of his puffy, bloodshot eyes he had probably been crying as well. And from the state of his clothes he hadn't changed or bathed in a couple days.

"Itachi, please sit down. I need to speak with you about the mission Danzou gave you." The Hokage stood up and showed Itachi to a spot on one of the two couches that was placed at the opposite end of the room from the desk.

"I realize the gravity of the request and I want to say that I do not want you to do it. The council came up with this on their own and I do not abide by their decision." His voice was firm, but friendly and Itachi looked up from the floor.

"How else do we stop the coup, then? Protect the village and Fire country?" Itachi's voice was hoarse and it hurt to speak.

"I am taking care of that Itachi. You do not need to shoulder that burden." The Hokage spoke with confidence and Itachi wondered if maybe there was someone to save him after all. "Your father and I are meeting frequently to iron things out. We will reach a compromise."

Itachi's hopes fell. "The council has refused all of your suggestions."

Sarutobi was silent. It was true. Every effort he made at compromise was blocked by his own people. It was almost like they wanted the coup to happen…

The Hokage blinked his eyes in surprise and looked straight at the boy in front of him. After he made his last suggestion the council had nearly gone off the deep end. Then Danzou came up with this… mission. That man was doing this for the sole purpose of exterminating the Uchiha clan, and having one of its own do the dirty work was the icing on the cake.

"Itachi, Danzou is using you…"

Itachi interrupted, "I realize that. But it doesn't change anything, does it? I'm not an idiot."

"Will you wait, at least? Wait until the last minute? I still have an ace up my sleeve and if it works, it will be to everyone's benefit." Sarutobi was practically begging, but he wasn't ashamed of it.

Itachi agreed, "Yes… I told him I would wait."

"Thank-you. I promise I will make it worth your while. You won't have to do this terrible thing." Sarutobi watched as Itachi nodded. "Now you should go home and try to get some sleep. I'm really worried about you Itachi, I know things have been hard for you, and I stood by and watched when I should have spoken up. I apologize for that, and now I will make it up to you."

"You don't have to feel sorry for me. I don't really deserve it."

Sarutobi smiled. "We all feel that way sometimes Itachi, that just means your normal."

That took Itachi by surprise and he quickly turned his head to look at the man sitting next to him. "Normal?" The word was spoken like a foreign phrase.

"I suppose that word was never used around you before." The Hokage gave Itachi a wistful smile.

"No. It was once. But I killed the man who said it." Itachi stood up and walked to the door.

"Who?" The Hokage called out after the boy.

"Dr. Motoi." Itachi stopped walking. "Killing him… was a mistake." Itachi opened the door and exited the room, leaving the Hokage to ponder the boys parting words.

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The days that followed were a blur that Itachi never remembered fully. All he knew for sure was that his mother's food tasted like ash, his brothers words were like a banshee screaming in eternal frustration and pain, his fathers presence felt like the Grim Reaper waiting to kill. He, himself felt like a pathetic human being, weak and unworthy of the Gods graces, walking the earth in eternal damnation.

Everyone worried about him as he stared off into space during dinner, failed to change his clothes for days on end, and worst of all, didn't speak. The severe depression started to break two weeks after his meeting with Danzou. He realized, while lying on the grass out in the forest, that if he didn't train he wouldn't be able to protect the village. And if he was lying around feeling sorry for himself then training would be impossible.

Picking himself up off the ground he wandered home and walked straight into the bathroom. Stripping off his clothes he started to wash himself, but scrubbed too hard and scratched his leg. It started bleeding. Standing up he walked to the medicine cabinet, but found no bandages.

Itachi opened the door slightly and called out, "Mother! Where are the bandages?"

Mikoto, thrilled at hearing her son's voice for the first time in two weeks ran into the bathroom and pulled them out of a drawer in the sink cabinet. "I moved them to make it easier to Sasuke to get at them. He keeps hurting himself. Do you need help with your bath? Let me fill the tub for you." She rushed over to the square soaking tub and turned on the water then turned around and picked up the sponge. "I'll wash your back, Itachi, just sit still."

"Mother you don't need to…"

"It's okay, that's why I'm here." Mikoto knew she was rambling, but she couldn't help it. She had been so worried the last two weeks that, unbeknownst to everyone, she had probably eaten less than Itachi. Fugaku hadn't been any help, he was convinced his son was being a moody teenager and pining after Shisui. He had heard that Itachi had spent the night sleeping on top if his cousin's grave. He told her the boy would get over it eventually.

"Th… thanks." Itachi put his hands in his lap and sat still. His mother hadn't washed his back since he was very small and he found himself feeling sorry for her.

Later, after dressing in a pair of shorts and a sleeveless shirt he dug his Akatsuki ring out of its hiding place and called the Leader.

"_Yes, Itachi? Did you want something_?" The Leaders voice had a hint of annoyance, like he had been caught at an inopportune time.

"A mission." Itachi stated simply.

"_I will get back to you with one soon." _He sounded like he was in a hurry.

"Now." Itachi said firmly.

Leader was silent for a couple minutes as he wondered what was going on.

"_Nevertheless I will have to get back to you. There is a lot of work to be done so do not worry."_ Leader cut the communication.

Itachi banged his hand down on the floor and cursed. "I'll just get ready and leave anyway." He gathered his Akatsuki uniform, checked his backpack and, after telling his mother he was leaving on a mission, walked out of Konoha.

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The sound of hammers and saws could be heard throughout the village as the residents worked hard to reconstruct the damage caused by Zabuza a few short weeks ago. Just as Madara had planned, with each pound of a hammer the citizens cursed the name of their one-time hero.

The Mizukage sat comfortably in the sitting room of his luxurious mansion. Holding a cup of sake he looked out through the open shoji doors to the manicured garden beyond. He wore no mask here, and his clothes were the usual white robes worn by all Kages in each of the five nations. His hat was sitting on a nearby table. The warm July afternoon was typically lazy and he jumped slightly in surprise when he heard Pein calling him.

He gave a soft chuckle as he realized he was probably dozing off. "Good afternoon Pein."

"_Your golden-boy called me a few minutes ago_." Pein said calmly.

"And?"

"_He wants a mission. Right now. What's going on in Konoha?"_ Pein's voice changed from calm to concerned. Madara smirked. The man tended to be a little paranoid and no doubt Itachi raised some serious flags with his behavior.

"Perhaps he is being a thirteen-year-old and wants to get away from his parents?" Madara joked.

"_Not funny, Madara."_ Pein wasn't amused.

Madara sighed in frustration. "I don't know what's going on, Pein. Don't worry about it. Give him a mission that should last a couple weeks. I'll do some spying and see what I can come up with while he's gone."

"_I'll do that."_ Pein cut the communication.

Groaning Madara picked up his sake bottle and realized it was empty. "Princess? Is there more sake in the cabinet next to you?"

"I'll look." A fifteen-year-old girl with dark eyes and long black hair put a book down and bent over the cabinet, pulling out a small bottle. "There are three left. I'll ask the servants to order more in the morning." She stood up and carried it over.

Madara looked up at her and smiled, holding out his cup. She pursed her lips in annoyance and opened the small bottle, pouring some of the clear liquid into the cup.

"By the way, when is your birthday?" He asked, sipping some of the sake.

"August. Next month. Are you going to buy me a present?" She teased, half-heartedly.

"I'm going to marry you. In two years." He grabbed for her hand, and after catching it he kissed her fingers. She quickly pulled it back and stepped away.

"You say that to all the girls I bet. Besides, you're too old for me. I was warned about you, you know." The girl sighed and looked out the window. She grinded her teeth and clenched her fists in annoyance.

"True. But my plans for you have a purpose, Aya. And they will come to pass." Madara laughed at the look of disgust that crossed the girls face. "My little troublemaker."

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**Updates on Fridays**


	61. Chapter 61 Disappointment

**Last week – Itachi received his final mission from Danzou**

**Thanks for the reviews and fav's**

**Merry Christmas and Happy New Years! An extra chapter to celebrate! Enjoy **

**Disclaimer – Kishimoto owns Naruto**

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**Chapter 61 – Disappointment**

"Haven't seen you in a few months, Itachi." Kisame greeted the sullen looking teenager who was currently leaning against a tree. "Moping already huh?"

"Hn." Itachi pushed himself off the tree and started walking. He kicked at some rocks in front of him in an uncharacteristic show of emotion.

Kisame smirked, wondering if a game of "let's piss of Itachi" would be fun. The question was, how exactly do you piss the boy off? Personal questions sometimes angered him, so maybe that was a good place to start.

"You got a girlfriend, Itachi?"

"Hn." Itachi answered.

"A boyfriend?" Kisame smirked when Itachi gave him the mother of all dirty looks. "A girl then."

He waited a moment before continuing. "An older woman?"

"Hn."

"A younger woman?"

"Hn."

Kisame sighed and gave up. "Pissing off Itachi" wasn't such a fun game after all. He wasn't that easy to bait. Perhaps he should just stick to straight conversation.

"The Mizukage has a cute young thing hanging off his arm these days. Prettiest black eyes, shiny black hair, and she's so shy it's cute." Kisame laughed at his "slight" exaggeration after all the girl had seemed anything but shy; however it was cut short when Itachi suddenly rounded on him, Sharingan blaring with anger.

"_What the hell are you talking about?"_ Itachi yelled.

Kisame stepped back, shocked at the boy's reaction. "What?"

"What's her name?" Itachi snapped.

"Aya. I don't know her last name or even what clan she comes from. She isn't allowed out of the mansion." Kisame spoke quietly, wondering why Itachi would find that interesting.

"How long ago was it that you saw her?"

"A few days ago. I was curious about how much damage Zabuza caused. He set out to assassinate the Mizukage but completely missed him. No damage to the government buildings whatsoever. Of course, the rest of the village is being rebuilt but on the whole there were few casualties. I guess the Mizukage knew what was about to happen and evacuated the citizens before the attack."

"So his residence was untouched?" Itachi asked quietly, as if talking to himself.

"Completely intact." Kisame said cautiously. "Is this girl, Aya, something to you?"

"No. Just… heard some rumors. Is the… Mizukage… in the habit of taking young girls…to his… bed?" Itachi wasn't comfortable asking the question and blushed slightly, in spite of himself.

"As a matter of fact he isn't. My guess is she's either older than she looks or he's grooming her to become his wife or mistress. You know, keeping her around until she's eighteen or nineteen. It was an accident that I even saw her. As I said, he doesn't allow her out of his mansion. In fact, he usually prefers women who are closer to thirty and _very_ experienced." Kisame was really curious now. He hadn't really thought twice about the issue, other than to silently congratulate the man on finding such a pretty girl. "She wasn't being exactly… 'demure', 'obedient'… I guess are the words I'm looking for. He's got his work cut out for him with that one." He laughed.

Itachi turned around and started walking again. So Madara did lie to them so he could keep her for himself. For some reason he felt relieved. As long as she wasn't in Konoha he wouldn't have to kill her. That would please Shisui. And Sheeta… he could send her away… Madara might take her in. He quickly realized though that she would never forgive him and would live the rest of her life in sorrow. Although at least she would be alive…

Sighing he looked up at the sky. He had promised he wouldn't do anything until Sarutobi and Fugaku exhausted all attempts at reconciliation. Therefore, there was no need to make any plans yet.

"When you were sick…" Kisame started talking, then reconsidered whether he should continue or not before finishing, "you mentioned an 'Aya'. She was Shisui's girlfriend."

Itachi stopped walking and closed his eyes. Kisame stopped a few feet behind him. "Did she run away or was she kidnapped?"

"Neither." Itachi said softly.

"Are you going to get her back?" Kisame wondered. This situation sounded very complicated. He wondered if Aya had been on a mission and deserted. Either way, the Mizukage now had an Uchiha female in his mansion. That would probably please him to no end. He almost laughed, but held it in so he wouldn't upset his young partner. Itachi seemed to be on edge about something and he had a feeling the revelation about Aya had nothing to do with it.

"No. She's safe it sounds like." Itachi sighed, berating himself for reacting. "At least for a while."

"That's quite a voice you got there, Itachi." Kisame volunteered, changing the subject. "You sound suave and cultured. To think you're only thirteen! The girls are going to be crawling all over you."

Itachi growled as he directed another dirty look as his partner. This voice-changing thing was really annoying. "Really?" He asked sarcastically.

Kisame laughed. "Don't fight it, Itachi. You'll find it can be a great advantage. Sweet-talking yourself out of situations should be very appealing to one such as yourself. You don't seem to like killing people."

A half-smile played on Itachi's lips for a brief second, "Why are you always right?"

Kisame suddenly got serious, "I got eleven years on you kid. But… I'm not always right. Far, far from it."

Itachi returned his attention to the road and his thoughts drifted back to his final Konoha mission. The mechanics of the operation were much more complicated than Danzou thought. There were a lot of people in the clan and fighting them all would be difficult. The weak ones could be taken out with minimal effort. However, the clan was composed of many skilled Shinobis and even the elders could hardly be referred to as "pushovers".

The Mangekyou Sharingan had many useful techniques, but the damage they would cause had the potential to harm Konoha. He had to accomplish his mission quietly so as not to disturb the villagers who lived around the compound. If they got involved they would be injured. Also, he had the issue of his father and mother. Two of the most powerful shinobi in the clan. Fighting Fugaku would no doubt drain him considerably, and if he and Mikoto ganged up on him he would probably not have enough chakra left to take out the rest of the clan. This was why he had not killed his father yet. It was a very risky undertaking.

Itachi had learned a lot from the scroll Madara had given him, but he was only about an eighth of the way through it. So far the techniques it described were violent and destructive, not to mention the huge quantities of chakra they expended. Hopefully, somewhere in the remaining scroll were some techniques that could utilize Genjutsu or were less destructive. He would have to double his efforts and learn it as soon as possible.

But even so, it was becoming clear to the teenager that he needed help. He needed another person. He glanced back at Kisame who was walking silently behind him, lost in his own thoughts. As powerful as he was, he probably couldn't go up against his clan. Although his water nature was the best defense against the fire nature that was predominant in the clan, most of the Uchihas had a second or even a third elemental nature that would probably kill Kisame pretty quick. He needed someone more powerful and there really was only one choice.

Madara. Itachi nearly stumbled when the name drifted through his head, but there was no other choice. He was the only one powerful enough to take on the Uchiha clan.

'But if I do that… then I have truly sold my soul to the devil.' Itachi thought to himself, 'But then again, killing them will do that anyway. No matter what, I'm damned.'

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The noisy schoolyard echoed with the sounds of playing children as Fugaku walked by. He was walking around the village on patrol and the sound attracted him. Standing across the street he leaned against a building and looked for Sasuke. The boy wasn't running around and playing like the other children, but standing in front of a target throwing shurikens. There was a group of girls standing off to the side watching him and whispering.

Fugaku smiled. The boy had quite a fan club already and he was only eight. Looking closer he saw that Sasuke was hitting the bull's-eye about two-thirds of the time. Well, it wasn't perfect. Itachi would have gotten all of them.

"_You shouldn't keep comparing Sasuke to Itachi, Fugaku. He's had a different upbringing. Times are different; we don't need to push him so he doesn't need to advance as fast as his brother." _

He smiled as he remembered Mikoto's words. Sasuke would grow up to be as good as Itachi, but she was right, he didn't need to do it right away. A couple minutes later Fugaku continued walking down the street.

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The Hokage's office was filled with tension as Sarutobi faced off with Koharu and Homura. The two elders had entered the room in a bad mood that did not seem inclined to lift anytime soon.

"I'm not backing off on this, Koharu." Sarutobi said sternly. "I want the forced residency for the Uchiha lifted."

"And I keep telling you that until they show us real and meaningful progress that will never happen." Koharu's equally stern voice gave him no quarters.

"We have already pulled back on the ANBU. Why should that have not been enough?" Homura stated.

"Besides," Koharu smiled, "Danzou has already given Itachi a mission that will take care of the problem."

Sarutobi felt like he had just been slapped across the face. "You can't be serious! Making a boy kill his family, his clan, is how you want to deal with this?"

"Of course not!" Koharu answered. "It's barbarous. But there is no other alternative. The village must be protected, _at all costs_! If they attack it will lead to another ninja war. Tens of thousands will die, Sarutobi. Can you really justify keeping them alive?"

Sarutobi sighed in frustration, "If we treat them like human beings, like citizens of Konoha, then there won't be a coup and no one has to die."

"You aren't being objective about this." Koharu stated firmly. "They have been treated as citizens for decades, and now they repay us by revolting."

"Treating people as citizens does not mean following them around, confining them to a corner of the village and then murdering them. What other group in Konoha have you done this too?"

"The Hyuuga are controlled by their seal. In that way they conform and bend to our desires. _They_ are obedient." Homura answered, giving the Hokage a self-satisfied smile.

"Another barbarous act. However, that is something they did to themselves. It had nothing to do with us. Also, last time I looked they had no residency restrictions placed on them and ANBU was not following them around." Sarutobi was getting tired of the argument. He had been bringing up the same points, over and over for weeks. And still the elders refused to budge. He did have an ace up his sleeve, however, but he wasn't going to use it until he had exhausted all his other options. It was one the elders had almost no chance of disagreeing with.

"I believe we have other business to discuss, Sarutobi. Let's drop this pointless subject and get on with it." Homura opened a scroll and the subject was dropped.

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Returning from his Akatsuki mission Itachi was in slightly better spirits, but upon entering the Uchiha compound he was struck with how quiet and silent it was. It took a few seconds for him to realize it was nearly 2am and everyone was in bed. Shaking his head to clear it, he looked around at the dark street, lit by only a handful of street lights. At the far end of the street was the clan temple. The place where he had taken an oath to lead and protect the clan. And punish them when they strayed from the "path".

"What is the 'path'?" Itachi said out loud. He remembered being told as a child that it was whatever the clan's chief dictated it was.

"How long are you going to stand there talking to yourself?" Toshiro walked away from the wall by the gates. He was wearing his police uniform, consisting of black pants, shirt and a green jounin vest with a piece of white fabric that fell from his belt, draping down to his knees with the police symbol on it.

"Oh. I was just… returning from a mission." Itachi looked up for a moment, then turned his gaze to the ground.

"Something down there interest you?" Toshiro also looked at the ground.

"Hn."

"What's gotten you down lately, kid? This isn't like you."

"Nothing."

"Would you like me to speak with Fugaku? If you are feeling overwhelmed I will get your duties cut back." Toshiro's concerned voice softened Itachi's hard expression.

"No. He would just get mad. You… don't know him the way I do… even though you guys are friends." Itachi finally spoke, but his voice was soft, almost inaudible.

"I do know him, Itachi. I do know and understand why and what he is. That doesn't mean you should forgive him for the way he raised you, though. Far from it."

Itachi was shocked by Toshiro's words and looked up at him with an expression of surprise on his face.

"Your eyes… they are dead, and have been for a long time." Toshiro reached over and put his thumb underneath Itachi's right eye, caressing it. "Even Shisui's legacy did nothing to return the light to your existence."

Itachi stared wide-eyed at his best-friend's father. 'He knows about the Mangekyou Sharingan.'

"And because of that, I cannot allow your suffering to continue." Pulling a kunai Toshiro brought it up. The moonlight glittered off the blade as he laced his fingers through Itachi's hair and tipped his head back, then brought it down across Itachi's throat.

As the moonlight faded and the world darkened, Itachi spoke, "Thank-you."

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Gasping, Itachi sat up straight in his bed and grabbed for his throat. Finding it whole and un-bloodied he brought his knees up to his chest and rested his forehead on them. Of every single dream he had ever had, that was the most realistic. Everything about it, down to the last detail was there in front of him. From the dark night, to the bright moon, the pain of the blade on his throat, and finally, the relief when he realized he was dying. The relief that someone would care enough to kill him and end his suffering.

But it was all a dream. A fantasy of his subconscious. He was not dead, and would not be for many more years. And likely, when he did die, it would be in battle with Madara or weak and ill from his disease. Neither brought his mind any peace.

Getting out of bed, Itachi dressed and made his way to the kitchen. Fugaku was there, alone, sipping tea and reading a scroll. He looked tired, as if he hadn't been sleeping. It was very early and neither Mikoto nor Sasuke would be rising for another hour.

"Itachi." The older man greeted his son. "Returned last night?"

"Yes."

It was silent for a while as Itachi prepared himself some toast and sat down to eat it and drink some tea.

"How… are the discussions with the Hokage going?" Itachi finally asked.

"Same." Fugaku answered curtly. "Damned council. Why can't the old bastard stand up to them?"

"Indeed." Itachi added.

"It's like… like they want people to die. They are disagreeing to purposely cause a war so they can say 'we told you so'."

Itachi looked up at his father. The comment was very insightful and he remembered that he had told Danzou that he would not attack if a compromise was worked out. Did he ruin the negotiations by saying that? Was all of this being done to force his hand?

"I won't back down, though. The clan deserves better than this." Fugaku said quietly. He looked at his son and noticed he had lost weight and his eyes were dull. "Itachi, has Danzou started training ANBU to fight in the coup?"

"No father." Itachi looked Fugaku in the eye, then bit into his toast.

Fugaku looked back at his scroll. It was a report of the recent surveillance by the clan. And, unfortunately for Itachi, it recorded clearly and concisely the training methods being used to prepare ANBU for fighting civil uprisings as well as counters for Genjutsu.

'Itachi,' Fugaku thought, 'how long have you been lying to me?'

"Itachi, we're going to be making a big hit on three targets tomorrow evening. Would you like to come?" Fugaku asked.

"Why ask me?" Itachi asked glumly.

"You seem bored."

He sighed. "Where and what time?"

"Four hundred block of the business district, 1am."

Itachi was silent for a minute. "I'm on the evening shift tomorrow. I have to babysit some new recruits. Night tracking in the woods."

"Hmm. Well, maybe next time." Fugaku frowned and left the room, making his way back to the meeting room. 'I really hope you are busy, Itachi.'

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The next evening found Fugaku sitting across from the four-hundred block, hiding his chakra. Mikoto was nearby, also hiding her chakra. He had considered coming by himself, but an operation like this required backup, and Mikoto was the only one he knew beyond a shadow of doubt that would keep silent about what she saw.

The area was a collection of three story buildings of various shapes and sizes. All had shops in the bottom story and apartments or offices in the upper stories. After 8pm the area was usually closed up and deserted, except for the people who lived there. The dirt road blew up dust devils as the wind blew between the buildings.

He sat still, waiting, hoping that what he expected to happen didn't. However, soon enough the silent August evening was interrupted by the quiet footfalls of several approaching ninjas. The ANBU landed on the building above where he was hiding. Looking up, Fugaku saw them signaling to each other. Glancing over at Mikoto, he caught her eye and they both quietly left the area.

Instead of heading home, Fugaku lead Mikoto to the secret chamber in the temple. They descended the stairs and lit a single candle that was sitting on the altar then sat down on the dais. It was silent for a long time. Neither wanted to admit what they had seen. Finally, Fugaku felt he had to say something.

"He… betrayed us. Me." Fugaku's voice trailed off.

"What… what do we do?" Mikoto sounded like she was one step away from crying.

There was silence again for several minutes.

Fugaku wondered why he wasn't angry. He should be; he had every right to be. But instead, all he felt was a deep, heart-wrenching disappointment. He put his hand down on the dais and brushed it across the surface. All those years ago, this was where he had sworn to protect the clan. Then, years later, Itachi had stood in the same place and taken the same oath. He had been proud of his son that day. It was, perhaps, one of the happiest days of his life. But now it was gone. The oath had meant nothing. Why would Itachi betray them? All he could think of as an explanation was that Danzou had gotten to him, brainwashed his boy.

"We don't pass anymore information to him. Keep him at arms length. I'll have to detain him before the coup, he… might fight for the other side and he's too powerful for us to allow that."

"Yes. I… don't want him to get hurt."

"He can still be used to kill Madara. That is why I will detain him when I should ki…" He stopped talking. He couldn't bring himself to say "kill him". It was too painful.

More silence.

Fugaku sighed. "I have been considering this for a long time, and I'm sorry Mikoto, but after the coup, I will be naming Sasuke as my heir instead of Itachi. I know I said I would leave him for you, so you would have a son to stand by your side, but I don't have any other choice now."

Mikoto wiped her eyes and sniffed. "I understand. He will be pleased to spend more time with you."

Fugaku gave his wife a bitter-sweet smile. "Sasuke's a good boy. I… learned a lot from my mistakes with Itachi. Or… I think I did. I believe I can do better with Sasuke."

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The next day Itachi walked into the house around lunch-time.

"How was your trek in the woods last night?" Fugaku greeted him.

"Annoying." Itachi answered. He had shown up uninvited to "help" Yuri with her mission and while the teen didn't question him, she had suspected something was wrong.

Fugaku raised one eyebrow, curious about his son's answer. "Surely ANBU candidates aren't that incompetent."

"No, not all of them. Just two. It distracted the rest of the class. Yuri got mad and attacked them. They're in the hospital now." Itachi spoke quietly.

"Yuri? I didn't realize she had such a temper."

"Everyone does, if you push the right buttons."

"True, Itachi. Very true." Fugaku looked down at his son. The boy was looking at the floor, eyes half closed. He reached out and put his hand around Itachi's upper arm. "You are dropping weight, Itachi. You need to eat more. If you get sick… your illness…"

"I'm fine. Dr. Yakushi said I don't have to worry about it for a few more years anyway." Itachi stepped back, forcing Fugaku to let go. "Can I go now?"

"Itachi, is there anything you want to tell me?" Fugaku asked, concern leaking into his voice.

Itachi finally looked up, but quickly returned his gaze to the floor. "No."

"Then go get some rest." He reached out and ran his hand through Itachi's hair as the boy turned around and walked away.

'Things were so different when you were four, so much simpler.'

_Fugaku returned home around 7pm. He was tired and really wanted nothing more than to go to bed. However, when he approached the house he saw a small boy sitting at the top of the porch stairs. "Well I guess you're ready for training, then." He said with a small smile. _

"_Yes!" The boy stood up straight, then bowed "Welcome home father. I hope you had a good day at work."_

'You're so far away from me, Itachi.'

"_The wind pulled the tie out. You don't want to burn your hair." He replaced the tie and tied the bow twice so it wouldn't slip out. "Okay, you're ready."_

"_Thanks." Itachi replied. He put his hands up and made the hand signs. Gathering up the chakra in his chest he let it out. The fireball that came out was as large as his fathers. "I did it!" He gave his father another big smile. The expression of happiness on his face was open and real. _

_Fugaku could only stare. 'Is there nothing this boy can't do?' He wondered to himself. "Oh, Itachi." He sighed. "You are my son. You are a genius. But you learn things so quickly, what am I going to do with you when I have nothing more to teach and you get bored?" What would a boy like Itachi do if he was bored?_

"_I'll be a ninja then and go on missions. That will be exciting. I won't get bored, father." _

'What can I do to get you back?'

He had a feeling the answer was "nothing".

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Sasuke lay in his bed and stared up at the light fixture in the ceiling. He was thinking about Itachi and becoming very depressed. He loved his older brother, but he was distant and seldom spoke to him, or their parents. He was so different. Ever since that day… the day he was accused of killing Shisui.

They had been talking, a friendly conversation. Itachi was trying to reassure him, explain to him what it meant to be brothers. Then _they_ showed up. _They_ accused him of something he didn't do and Itachi had reacted badly. The things he had said contradicted everything he had ever told Sasuke.

"Those eyes… it wasn't a normal Sharingan." He remembered his brother's dark eyes turned into a three tomoe Sharingan then blended into a three bladed windmill. He also remembered the look of shear malevolence and hate that the older boy had directed at their father's back.

_Fugaku walked toward the house, "Itachi, inside."_

_Sasuke kept watching Itachi, even as Fugaku walked past him. Itachi had turned his head and was looking at their father with such intense hatred that Sasuke found himself unable to turn away even if he had wanted to. His brother's three tomoe Sharingan was drawing the boy in. Slowly he saw the tomoes become longer until they stretched from the pupil to the outside of the iris. Sasuke had never seen a Sharingan like that and continued to stare at his brother until his eyes returned to their normal black a few seconds later._

_Itachi stood up and walked into the house without acknowledging Sasuke. He turned to go to his room, but Fugaku grabbed his collar. "Sasuke, find someplace outside to go. Don't return for another hour." _

Sasuke remembered that he had returned an hour later and walked into his brother's room. Itachi was lying on the bed on his side with only his shorts on. He had an icepack resting on his ribs. Looking closer Sasuke saw the large bruises on his chest, around his neck and on one side of his face. Itachi told him he got them on a mission, but he didn't believe him, after all they had not been there an hour earlier. Sasuke may be a naïve kid, but he wasn't _that_ gullible. While he had been on the receiving end of his father's wrath a few times and come out sore and unable to sit for a few hours, it had never been anything like this. It scared him to know that their father could be so violent.

"Two years…" Sasuke said quietly. "When is this going to end?"

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**Next week Itachi meets with Madara**

**Please review! **

**Updates on Fridays**


	62. Chapter 62 A Fateful Decision

**Last week Fugaku discovers Itachi has been lying to him about what Danzou is up to.**

**  
Thanks for all the reviews and favs and for just lurking around and reading. **

**Happy New Year!**

**To clear up a minor misunderstanding:**

**In the manga, I saw two things that told me the elders do have the ability to override the Hokage. The first was the mission assigned to Itachi to assassinate his clan by the elders and Danzou (not the Hokage) and the second was in chapters 282 and 284. It was pretty clear to me that the elders are telling Tsunade what to do and back off only when she promises to defend the village with her life. Also, Shizune runs to the elders to complain when Tsunade is about to send Naruto on a mission. If the elders didn't have any authority then what would have been the point of that? Anyway, I know others may not have read it the same as me, but that is what I am using as the basis for how the elders in this story are behaving. Also, looking at the real world as an example, most governments have a failsafe to overturn decisions made by a president or prime minister.**

**I also can't blame the Uchiha completely for their rebellion. That they were discriminated against seems to have been established, and if history has taught us one thing, it's that discrimination breeds discontent and eventually rebellion, no matter how arrogant or humble the discriminated group is the results will be the same. The Hokage was trying to defuse the situation, which must mean he was talking to Fugaku, and Fugaku was probably, on some level, also trying to negotiate. At this point I deduced that the elder council and Danzou did something to "fuel the fire" so to speak. Hopefully when Sasuke shows up to kick some elder butt we'll find out more about what really happened. Right now we only have Madara's word about the events, and considering the fact that he has his own agenda I'm not so sure we're getting the full story (I'm not saying he's lying, but he may be exaggerating or omitting information).**

**Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by Kishimoto, but Pein is currently attempting to gain rights…**

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**Chapter 62 - A Fateful Decision**

"Captain Fugaku?" Sheeta knocked on his office door and called out to him, "I have some important information for you."

"Come in Sheeta." Fugaku watched as the teenager walked in and handed a sealed envelope to him. "What's this?"

"It came from the policemen who have been investigating Rumiko's death. They told me to give it to you ASAP."

"Are they still here?" He opened the envelope and read the enclosed message. His eyes opened wide and he slammed it down on his desk before Sheeta could answer the question. "Is Toshiro still around?"

"He went home an hour ago." Sheeta answered. She had been sitting at the front desk for the last three hours and he had stopped to chat for a few minutes before leaving.

"Contact him on the wireless and tell him to get back here immediately." Fugaku spoke rapidly as his dug through his desk and pulled out a pad of paper.

"Yes Captain. Right away." Sheeta ran back to the front desk and picked up a transmitter. Dialing in Toshiro's frequency she put the earpiece next to her ear, and moved the microphone so she could speak into it.

"Toshiro, pick up." Sheeta spoke clearly. She repeated the statement three times before she heard his voice.

"This is Toshiro."

"Return to the station immediately."

"On my way."

A few minutes later he ran into the station. "Captain Fugaku wants to see you in his office." Sheeta pointed at the door leading to the offices. A few minutes later Fugaku and Toshiro walked back into the lobby.

"Sheeta, we are bringing in a prisoner that should be locked up in the clan's isolation cells. Go back and tell Yotsua to prepare one." Fugaku's voice was rushed and as soon as he finished speaking, he and Toshiro left the building.

Sheeta stood up from the reception desk and hurried back to the prison cells. She knocked on the locked door and Yotsua looked through a small window at her and smiled.

"Hey, little girl, what's up?" Yotsua smirked as Sheeta cringed at his little "pet name" for her.

"The Captain is bringing in a prisoner he wants put in the isolation cells." She said hurriedly.

"Okay, I'll get right on it." He disappeared back behind the locked door, leaving Sheeta to wonder why Fugaku was in such a hurry to bring this man in. There had to be more to it than just the desire to apprehend Rumiko and Umihiko's murderers.

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When Fugaku had seen the name on the report he knew he was going to have problems. However, he was not going to allow the man to escape justice. Quickly writing up an arrest warrant he grabbed Toshiro as soon as the man ran into his office and they both took off.

"He was never allowed back into ANBU when he got out of jail, but I'll bet anything that as soon as they find out we have him in custody Danzou will cook up some kind of story in order to force us to release him." Fugaku explained quickly as they made their way to the other side of the village.

"Even after all these years of being a policeman it still blows my mind when I see the lengths some people will go to for retribution." Toshiro gritted his teeth in frustration.

Arriving at an apartment house built in the typical "rounded" style seen throughout Konoha the two Uchiha's located the man's apartment window. Fugaku signaled Toshiro to monitor the window in case the target tried to escape while he went inside and made the arrest.

Knocking on the door, Fugaku waited as he listened carefully. A TV was going, playing some sort of sitcom and after a few seconds the sound of someone walking heavily across the floor could be heard. The door opened and instantly Fugaku activated his Sharingan and pushed his way into the apartment.

"Honoo Hiryuu you are under arrest for murder, attempted murder, assault, conspiracy to commit murder, breaking and entering, leaving the village without permission…" Fugaku trailed off and turned his head to the table where several small bags filled with white powder were laying. Rolling his eyes in disbelief he continued talking, "and possession of an illegal substance. I have a feeling I'm going to be able to add to those charges over the next twenty-four hours as well if this is any indication of your lifestyle."

The man looked up at him and tried to focus his eyes. "Hey… if this is about the money I owe for that hit I'll have it next week."

Fugaku handcuffed his prisoner and led him down the stairs. Toshiro took one look at the man's dirty pants and ripped, stained shirt and laughed. "I guess he's fallen quite a bit. I seem to remember this guy being a little more powerful than this."

"I'll take him back to the station. Go up to his apartment and collect any evidence. Especially the stuff on the table." Fugaku walked off, dragging his unwilling and half conscious prisoner after him. He was slightly disappointed. He had expected more of a fight, considering the suspect was ex-ANBU.

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Entering the police station a few minutes later Fugaku belatedly remembered that Sheeta was on reception duty that evening and had to step between her and the prisoner when she launched herself at him, fully intending on a course of evisceration.

"Sheeta, calm down." Fugaku urged calmly as he removed the kunai from her hand.

"But he's the one who was harassing us in the woods back then!" Sheeta remembered how upset and scared she had been when their ANBU tails had suddenly decided to stop tailing them and make sexual innuendo's instead. Itachi had used his own ANBU connections to have the men removed from their posts.

"You bitch! You're the one who ruined my life!" It seemed the man had finally resumed some level of consciousness and began yelling, spit leaking out his mouth. "I killed the one, but they didn't get you so I refused to pay them!"

Fugaku looked up at a camera that was perched in a corner of the room, recording everything. "Well, Sheeta, looks like we got a confession. Have the media department edit out the last few minutes of the tape and process it for the hearing." Fugaku smiled, but the girl was still frowning and blinking her eyes, as if she was holding back her tears. "It'll be okay, he won't slip through our fingers."

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News that the murderer had been arrested spread fast; not just among the Uchiha clan but the rest of the village as well. Most were horrified at the thought that one of their own had actually gone to an enemy village, contracted enemy shinobi for an assassination, and then returned home like nothing was out of the ordinary. A few, however, were very vocal about proclaiming the man's innocence, claiming he had been set up because the police couldn't accept that Cloud ninja would act on their own to take out a powerful Kunoichi and her husband.

Itachi found himself in the middle of the battle three days after the arrest. Called to the Hokage's office on short notice he entered the room to discover Sarutobi and Danzou were already there.

"Itachi, thank-you for coming on short notice." The Hokage said after Itachi had sat down on the couch.

"It was not a problem." Itachi said calmly. He had been training with Yuri outside of the village when the Hokage's ninjas had found him. It had been raining steadily all day and Itachi was wet. Sarutobi didn't seem to mind though, and the teenager chalked it up to being a shinobi. After all, the couch had probably seen worse things on it than a little water, as evidenced by several dark colored stains on the fabric.

"What do you know about the recent arrest of Honoo Hiryuu?" Sarutobi immediately got down to business.

"I have read the reports and seen the video of the confession. I believe he is guilty of the accusations with which he was accused." Itachi looked the Hokage straight in the eye as he spoke, but kept his peripheral vision trained on Danzou, who had yet to speak

"It may seem hard to believe, but the man is an ANBU operative. He was supposed to have been up in Cloud gathering information. Unfortunately he also used the opportunity to hire an assassin." Danzou said distastefully.

"So… the arrest is illegal?" Itachi said, disbelief leaking into his voice.

"Yes." Sarutobi said frowning. "ANBU cannot be arrested unless I specifically write out the arrest warrant."

"There is another problem here." Danzou explained. "Honoo was helping with an investigation into the importation of illegal drugs into Konoha. His contacts found out he was arrested and we lost several months worth of work." He frowned angrily, "If Fugaku had bothered to follow protocol and check the current status of the man he would have known all this and left him for us to handle."

Itachi sat silently for a couple minutes, looking into the faces of the two men sitting in the couch across from him. Sarutobi and Danzou were two of the most powerful and influential men in Konoha, but Itachi wasn't impressed. Others would have been quaking in their boots to find themselves alone in a room with them. Itachi didn't bat an eye.

Taking a deep breath, he let it out very slowly. "I don't believe a single word either of you have said."

Sarutobi and Danzou sat quietly for a few minutes, their faces revealing nothing of their inner thoughts. Finally Sarutobi chuckled and Danzou showed a very small smile.

"It is hard to believe at that." Sarutobi finally said. "You are definitely not afraid to speak your mind."

"Should I be?" Itachi interjected, slightly miffed at the Hokage's laughter.

Sarutobi answered with a big smile on his face, "That depends on what you have to say, but on the whole, no."

"Itachi, we need you to go explain the circumstances to Fugaku and secure the release of the prisoner." Danzou said, getting back to the original subject.

"Yes of course. He will be perfectly disposed to the arrangement and release him immediately." Itachi said dryly.

"Sarcasm does not suit you, young man." A hint of anger entered Danzou's voice.

"Do you have any proof that he was, indeed, an ANBU? I guarantee that despite your insistence to the contrary, Fugaku would have checked him out." Itachi knew that was true. His father was a stickler for the rules when it came to arrests. After all, a bad arrest could completely throw a conviction out the window.

The Hokage looked at Danzou, who sighed and closed his eyes. When he opened them a moment later he addressed the teenager in a stern voice, "Itachi, you appear to be allowing your personal feelings for the deceased to get in the way of an illegal arrest."

"Yes, I believe I am." Itachi replied. His unemotional response threw Danzou for a loop and he stared wide-eyed at the boy. "I ask again, do you have any proof that he was an ANBU?"

"Itachi!" Danzou yelled. "My word as your commanding officer is all the proof you need. You are ordered to secure the release of the ANBU currently be held by Fugaku Uchiha."

Itachi stared at Danzou for a few seconds before speaking. "I meant no disrespect, but you must understand my position. Honoo committed a grievous crime that killed two people, almost killed one other and was meant to kill two infants. Once he is released what are the chances he will pay for his crimes?"

"That is my decision and my decision alone." Danzou said angrily.

Sarutobi stood up and walked to his desk. "I will write out the arrest warrant and backdate it to the appropriate night. We will not press the matter any further."

After Itachi left Sarutobi rounded on Danzou, "What the hell did you think you were doing? Are you even remotely aware of the fact that Itachi's girlfriend was the girl who almost died?"

"Fugaku arrested an ANBU. That is the bottom line." Danzou said quietly.

"I'm beginning to side with Itachi in this and believe that you are lying about the man's status. However, as I have already written an arrest warrant, Honoo is no longer in your jurisdiction no matter what the truth is." Sarutobi was angry, "And if you ever embarrass me like that again I guarantee you will regret it. Now leave my office."

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Itachi knocked on his father's door at the police station and walked inside after hearing a muffled "Come in."

"Itachi. I don't see you here very often, what's going on?" Fugaku stood up and grew concerned as he looked closely at his son. He was thin and his gaunt looking face was focused on the floor. Water dripped slowly from his bangs but he didn't make any effort to move them away from his face.

Itachi spoke in a quiet voice, barely audible. "I just came from the Hokage's office. He wanted me to give you this." He handed over the arrest warrant.

Fugaku looked at it, "What's this about? That man was _not_ ANBU."

"Danzou was playing games. I called him on it, the Hokage called him on it. Just…file it away in case he makes a fuss again." Itachi said quietly.

"Humph. Sure… thanks, Itachi. Frankly, I was expecting something like that to happen." Fugaku watched as the boy exited the room without saying anything more. He had an overwhelming urge to call him back, but he couldn't think of a reason to. Frowning, and feeling slightly dejected Fugaku sank back down into his chair and stared at a picture of Itachi he had on his desk. The boy was five-years-old and sitting next to the lake. He had a big smile on his face and Mikoto, Kagura, Kisa, and Shisui were sitting behind him. Shisui had placed both hands on Itachi's shoulders, as if holding him still for the photo.

"I can't even remember the last time I saw you smile, Itachi." Fugaku spoke to the picture.

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"It is relaxing watching them play, is it not Itachi?" Danzou sat down on the park bench next to the teenager. The week of rainy weather had finally broken, replaced by sun, clear skies and temperatures in the sixties. The grassy field next to the bench was filled with children making the most of their after-school free time. Some were playing tag, others playing "ninja" and a few had brought dolls and were having kunoichi battles by bending the limbs back and forth.

Danzou hadn't seen Itachi since their confrontation in the Hokage's office. It didn't surprise him though. The teen seemed to be spending all his time training and there really was no reason for him to check in with him. He smirked inside his head and watched Itachi. He and Sarutobi had played their parts well last week, even if they didn't know they were acting. Danzou had wanted to know how far Itachi would go in his pursuit of justice and he had gone all the way, even to the point of disobeying orders. Sarutobi then stepped in to give the teen the appearance of victory by ruling against him. He was now positive that Itachi would go through with his final mission.

Itachi didn't look at Danzou as he nodded his head once to acknowledge the man next to him. The truth was that he was disturbed that Sasuke was not among them. He never played with the other children; in fact, the boy didn't appear to have any friends at all. All he thought about was training. The boys tried to get him to play with them; Itachi had seen an attempt not thirty minutes earlier. Three boys ran up to Sasuke and practically begged him to be on their team. They seemed to like the boy, or perhaps it wasn't "like" so much as "taking advantage of". They wanted him on their team so they could win whatever game they were playing, not because they wanted to be with him.

When he was at the Academy and in the years afterward Itachi had Shisui, Yota and Kabuto to hang out with. He was focused on training, but he also went out to lunch with them, sat around talking, and went hiking and camping. Sasuke wasn't doing any of that. And yet, his little brother didn't have the emotionless exterior that he did. The boy would laugh at their mother's jokes, pout when he didn't get what he wanted, yell when he was mad and cry when he was sad.

Danzou silently watched Itachi. It was clear he was lost in thought, but the ROOT commander knew that the teen was also very alert and keeping a close eye on him. "It will be a sorry day when this hill is empty and no longer echoing with the happy laughter of children."

Itachi turned and looked directly at Danzou. He creased his brow, but whether it was in confusion or frustration was unclear.

"Broken bodies, lying lifeless in the streets while their murderers step over them. Or on them. This is why ROOT exists, Itachi. Why you exist. To protect them, to make sure the village has a 'next generation'." Danzou's outward expression was stern, but inside he smiled as he saw the effect his words had on the young ANBU captain.

"I will protect them. You can be assured of that." Itachi said firmly.

"Where is Sasuke? I never see him here."

"He… never…" Itachi let his words trail off.

"Already a pawn of the Uchiha?" Danzou questioned, distastefully.

"Yeah." Itachi agreed. It was true, his little brother's sun rose and set over the clan.

"That saddens me. Such a young child… I know your upbringing was difficult; it's a shame to see that Sasuke has to endure the same thing. And what of Rumiko's twins? They will have to go through the same thing. It is an option, you can think about it… Sasuke and the infants can be spared if you give them to me to raise."

Itachi didn't answer and they were both quiet for a while as they continued to watch the playing children. Itachi recognized Naruto, who was running around with a small group of boys near the slide. They were taking turns sliding down the slippery aluminum while the boys still on the ground threw small bits of gravel at them. Itachi was at a loss as to figure out what the purpose of the game was, as each of the boys dutifully took their turn at being pelted, laughing the whole time.

Soon various parents began to show up, apparently on their way home from work. Calling out to the children they walked away happily. Danzou also made his exit at this time, bidding Itachi a short farewell he used a jutsu to disappear.

After thirty minutes only one boy was left in the playground. Blond, blue-eyed and looking very downcast, Naruto sat down on the edge of the slide and kicked at the gravel. After a few minutes he wiped his eyes and dropped his head down onto his lap. Faint sounds of sobbing could be heard and Itachi looked away. Images of many orphans, not just one, sitting in an otherwise deserted playground danced through his mind. He got up and left, but not before he turned around and took one last look at Naruto. He imagined Sasuke and Naruto as friends, two lonely boys hanging out together and finding companionship, if not friendship. If things were different… perhaps he would have even helped.

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"It is now the last week of September." Fugaku spoke sternly to the men and women gathered in front of him. The small room in the Hideout was full of people, but only four of them were Uchihas. "At long last we are ready to begin final preparations for the take-over."

"Finally. My people have been itching for some action." A tall, heavily muscled man flexed his fingers and clenched them into a fist.

Fugaku closed his eyes and gave a small smile. "Don't jump the gun. No one attacks until I say so."

"Whatever you say, boss." The big man chuckled.

"I am still trying to negotiate with the Hokage; however I am not hopeful that a resolution will be reached. Therefore we are beginning the countdown as of today." Fugaku paused and looked over the various clan representatives. They were here for only one reason: to attack Konoha. Some had traveled from as far away as northern Earth and Lightening countries. The clans were sequestered in the Hideout, separated of course. Some of them were quite warlike and eager to cause trouble. The last thing everyone needed was a war before the war.

"It's quite unbelievable that you could house everyone here, Lord Fugaku." A woman with short green hair said cheerfully.

"This facility can hold ten times the number currently sequestered." Fugaku said proudly. "We have been stocking it for months in preparation of your arrival. To that end, you should find the facilities adequate and you may leave your children and others who will not be fighting here during the battle."

The room grew noisy as everyone acknowledged his words. Fugaku gave them another small smile. "Right before the battle all the Uchiha stationed here will leave for the village, leaving you alone. You will then receive word via my summoned cats when you are to leave. I must say, disobedience at this time will endanger not just you, but your clan and the others in the Hideout so think twice before doing something stupid. There are a lot of people counting on you."

"Where is Itachi? I hear he's quite the fighter!" A man near the back piped up. Several others echoed this sentiment, and added other comments like "I want to see him fight", "Is he really just a kid", and "What do they need us for he could take the whole village on himself".

While Fugaku was flattered by all the comments directed at his son, it also served to break his heart. Itachi had betrayed him. Betrayed the clan. Neither he nor Mikoto had breathed a word of what they had seen that night and had not spoken about it since their conversation in the temple. It was something they couldn't bring themselves to accept. Yet when Fugaku looked at Itachi he saw a heavy burden weighing the teenager down. He had lost weight, wasn't sleeping, and no longer participated in family activities such as dinner or playing with his brother. Whatever was going on he knew it was not something Itachi wanted if it affected him that much.

No one else seemed to notice that something was amiss, or if they had they didn't mention it. Itachi had always kept to himself and with the heavy schedule ANBU kept him on the clan saw very little of him except for meetings, and even then he rarely spoke. Some had mentioned that they thought he was taking Shisui's death hard, and Kisa told Mikoto that she and Toshiro had found Itachi asleep on his grave on the anniversary of his death. But that didn't raise any red flags with the clan.

Danzou's death was something Fugaku had planned from the very beginning, but the more he saw his eldest son suffer the more painful and prolonged that death became. He was sure that the old ROOT commander had sunk his claws into Itachi and was whispering words of discord into his ears.

"He is in Konoha and will not be participating in this attack. I am holding him back for another purpose." Fugaku was a little taken aback at the disappointment some of the shinobi were expressing. Others, who didn't know Itachi, looked around curiously and mumbled questions. He had trouble convincing the elders not to use Itachi. They wanted the Uchiha genius to be at the forefront of the attack, standing beside his father. However, it was impossible, and Fugaku could not tell them why. Eventually he used the excuse that Itachi would be in the second wave should anything go wrong. That seemed to placate them.

Fugaku was pleased that all the clans he had summoned had come. Looking to his left he saw Uncle. The man was very uncomfortable in a room with so many people. He was standing next to the door, as if preparing himself for an escape. Fugaku felt disgust when he was with the man. He had fled, leaving his people to die, then lied to his own daughter about who he was. She still hadn't figured out the whole truth, although Itachi had apparently provided her with part of it, much to the displeasure of Uncle who had related the entire conversation to Fugaku several days later.

When Uncle's clan showed up the previous day, Fugaku and several Uchihas stationed at the hideout were on hand. The small group of people were bitter and not at all friendly to their clan lord. A few had said they were only there because of Yuri, whom they believed would never betray them. His brother was also there and Fugaku was struck by how similar the two were. No wonder it had been easy for him to convince Yuri he was her uncle.

Uncle's words were quick and to the point as he explained their role in the coup and promised them a new home in Konoha, at which point Yuri would step up to the position of clan leader. Fugaku was there to confirm the promise to the disbelieving men and women. They seemed happy with the arrangement and some even smiled, relief evident on their faces. But Fugaku realized that Uncle never spoke of himself and no one asked what his role would be after the coup. There seemed to be some sort of silent consensus on the matter and Fugaku held his tongue and his curiosity.

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The woods outside of the small coastal town in Fire country were quiet, except for the occasional birdsong that filled the air. The leaves were just beginning to turn orange and some had even dropped, decorating the rocky ground. The sun filtered through the branches speckling the ground with shadow and light.

Madara stood waiting. A week earlier he had received a summons from Itachi and was curious. Even though Pein had contacted him a few months earlier about what might be going on in Konoha Madara had never looked into it. Apparently that had been a mistake.

"_Itachi, what can I do for you?" Madara asked. He was in his mansion in the village hidden in the Mist and was watching Aya swimming in his pool. It was a lovely sight and he was rather upset at being disturbed. After all, it wasn't very often the weather was warm enough to swim and the teenager looked amazing in her one-piece purple swimsuit. Although he was a little put-out that she hadn't worn the skimpy bikini he had ordered her maid purchase for her._

"_I have a proposition for you." Itachi said cryptically._

"_Oh? What?" He was still distracted and not really listening._

"_Meet me in one week. It will be mutually beneficial."_

"_I don't have time to play games, Itachi."_

"_Do you have time to help me kill some people?" Itachi asked in an icy voice._

_Suddenly Madara was paying attention. "Who?"_

"_Uchiha."_

"_Plural? You said 'people'." Madara asked curiously._

"_Meet me and we will discuss it." Itachi sounded very serious and Madara was suddenly struck by how much like a man he sounded. He had a passing regret that the little boy he had found cowering under a rhododendron bush all those years ago was now gone. Such was the fate of children… to grow up, grow old, and die. _

Itachi walked down the path and wasn't surprised to see that Madara was already there. He had thought about his decision for days and had considered calling off the meeting many times, but in the end, this was the only way to do it. It was too big of a job to accomplish alone.

"So what is this deal you spoke of, Itachi?" Madara got right down to the point.

"I have received a mission from Konoha that I am unable to accomplish on my own. I am requesting assistance." Itachi's face revealed no emotion. Madara stood before him, not speaking. It was unusual for the normally talkative man and it put the teenager on edge. "I have been ordered to end the coup planned by Fugaku before it starts. To exterminate the Uchiha clan."

Madara had to exercise every bit of restraint he had to keep from laughing. It was proof of everything he had ever said. Everything he had told the clan when they had urged him to accept the truce from the Senju. He had argued that Senju and Uchiha were as oil and water. Never able to mix and forever fighting. And one day, Senju would wipe out Uchiha, kill them all. And now, it had come to pass.

"Why would I want to help you with that?" Madara asked quietly.

"Revenge." The word was a simple one, but for Madara it suddenly opened up a flood of memories going back eighty years. The disappointment he had felt when the truce was accepted, the betrayal when his own clan refused to stand behind him when he challenged the First Hokage for leadership of the village he had helped found, and the feelings of loneliness and abandonment that had followed him ever since.

"What's the catch?" Madara said in a deep voice. He couldn't imagine Itachi would do something this dark out of the goodness of his heart.

Itachi spoke calmly, "You only attack when I say. I am still hoping for a peaceful resolution, but it doesn't seem likely. Also, you will leave the village untouched. You will exclude them from Akatsuki's plans."

Madara gave a dark laugh, "What makes you think I need your permission to kill the clan and how will you keep me away from Konoha?"

Itachi gave a small smile. "I am every bit your equal, Madara. Both in power and potential. It is something you already recognize and I finally accept. If you defy me in this and break the deal you and I will fight. Also, it occurs to me that you groomed me for Akatsuki. You have a need for my abilities. If we fight and either of us dies, your plans, whatever they may be, are at an end. My death does not matter to me anymore. But my life does if it means I can continue to protect Konoha."

Looking down at the teenager in front of him Madara suddenly realized that every single word he had spoken was true. Itachi was still growing into his potential, and his power was strictly through the use of the Sharingan and the Mangekyou Sharingan. Exactly the same as himself when he was that age. What would happen if he did fight him? Madara kept his eye on the teen as he stood in front of him.

Madara's powers were diminished since the battle with the First decades earlier. He had continued to live, but at a great cost, and in order to regain his full powers back again he had to have Akatsuki fulfill their mission. He needed Itachi. Killing him wasn't an option. It never was. He would have to play by his student's rules. At least until…

"I accept your terms, Itachi Uchiha. But… do you accept the consequences of your actions?" Madara's calm voice was menacing and anyone else would have shivered to hear it. Itachi just looked up at him and cocked his head to the side.

"The guilt will haunt me the rest of my life." He rubbed his eyes, as if sleepy. "I will contact you when I am ready to begin. I am thinking it will be in the next two or three weeks, so… if you can stay nearby." He paused again. "Fugaku, Mikoto and Sasuke are mine. I will kill them."

"Would you like to spare anyone? I can send them to Mist." Madara offered.

"I considered that," Itachi said quietly, "but… it wouldn't be the same…"

"I understand." Madara said just as quietly. He watched as Itachi walked away, back the way he had come. After standing still for a few minutes he looked up at the sky. "It looks like Itachi will write the final chapter of the Uchihas short stay in Konoha, and I will be there to see it. But… I cannot allow Sasuke to be hurt. I wonder, Itachi… can you really kill your little brother?"

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**Next week: The Hokage surprises Fugaku with a compromise, Itachi has a conversation with an old friend and Sasuke gets to spend some quality time with his father.**

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**Updates on Fridays**


	63. Chapter 63 Attempted Resolution

**For those who are wondering, the "sequel" will begin when this story finishes – there's more information in my profile.**

**Thanks for all the reviews! I love reading them.**

**Disclaimer: Pein says he owns Naruto and is going to redraw Kishimoto's manga so that he gets everything he wants.**

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**Chapter 63 – Attempted Resolution**

The days grew steadily shorter as October began. The villagers began their preparations for winter as woodsmen started bringing in firewood and markets stocked up on late summer fruits and vegetables. Shoppers who entered the stores in the Uchiha compound saw nothing out of the ordinary as they made their purchases and gossiped happily with the merchants.

Under all that normalcy, however, was a growing anxiety and restlessness. However much they trusted their clan leader, there was still fear. No matter how arrogant their ideals or sure of their powers, there was a nagging feeling of caution, a feeling that something might go wrong.

Fugaku returned from the Hideout and was immediately pulled aside by Mikoto, who had a very worried look on her face. "A couple Hyuugas tried to back out yesterday. Toshiro stuck them in the isolation cells with chakra limiting devices."

"Shit!" The clan lord cursed under his breath, "I'll take a shower and then go talk to the rest. The last thing we need now is dissention in the ranks."

"Also, Honoo's lawyer is complaining because no trial has been scheduled yet." Mikoto continued.

Fugaku gave a short chuckle, "There will be no trial until after the coup. That man is going to face real justice, not just the trumped up 'slap them on the hand and let them go' shit that has been going on in the past."

Mikoto smiled. "Rumiko and Umihiko's parents will be very happy about that."

"Have they figured out custody of the boys?" Fugaku asked absent-mindedly as he started to undress.

"Umihiko's parents will take the older boy and Rumiko's parents are taking the younger boy. They didn't want to split them up since they are twins, but having them together while they are babies was a little overwhelming. Besides, they live only a few houses from each other so it's not like they won't see each other."

"I'm glad they figured something out on their own. Of course, I didn't think there would be a problem. They are reasonable people." Fugaku smiled. "How is Sasuke? He was moping around when I left."

Mikoto blinked her eyes, shocked that he noticed. "He is still a little mopey. I think that he's at an age where he's starting to put two and two together. He is eight after all."

"Does he suspect anything?" Fugaku was concerned. If Sasuke figured out what was going to happen he would have to be isolated for his protection.

"Absolutely not. I believe he is just… he misses his brother. Itachi no longer spends time with him."

"Of course." Fugaku sighed.

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When Itachi returned to the village he noticed right away that things were beginning to heat up. Always vigilant, the first indication was that some people with strong ties to the Hideout were no longer in Konoha. For example, Kisa, who was in charge of housing arrangements, was nowhere to be seen. Itachi suspected this meant the clans Fugaku had "invited" to his party were gathering in one spot, ready to strike at a moments notice.

He considered going up to the Hideout to see if he could ascertain the exact numbers of shinobi but decided it was probably pointless. Konoha could easily deal with the rogue clans if they attacked. After all, there couldn't be _that_ many of them. It was the Uchiha clan that posed the real threat.

The second hint Itachi had was that Fugaku was spending a lot of time in meetings. Not that it was unusual for a clan lord or police chief for that matter to be caught up in lots of discussions, but usually they didn't occur at 3am in the morning in the Hyuuga compound.

All of that kept going through his mind as he practiced Taijutsu in one of the training grounds outside of the village. Usually he went into the woods to train, but today he didn't feel like it. He had been studying and memorizing as many ninjutsus as he could as well as studying the scrolls Madara had give him several weeks earlier. The Mangekyou Sharingan was much more powerful than he had imagined. In fact, it was virtually unstoppable. He wondered how much of those powers he would have to use on his parents.

A teenager with white hair and round glasses walked up to Itachi while he was taking a break and stood two feet away, looking at him closely. "Well, look who it is."

"Hello Kabuto." Itachi said, backing up a few steps. "Why so close? Your glasses need a new prescription?"

"I haven't seen you in forever, just wanted to see if it was really you or not." Kabuto laughed, "You got a little taller, and you look so… preoccupied I guess."

Itachi sighed. He should have known Kabuto was teasing, but he _had_ been preoccupied and on guard. "Yeah, well, I'm an ANBU captain now and not in the village very often."

"Hmm, that would make it a little hard to see you then. By the way, I met Sasori's new partner the other day. He tried to blow me up." Kabuto laughed again and scratched back of his head, revealing a large bandage on his forearm. "I don't think he liked me."

"I _know_ he doesn't like me." Itachi gave the teenager a small smile.

"Well then, we can form the 'People Deidara Hates' club and have t-shirts made." Kabuto suggested.

"I have a feeling he'll stop 'trying' to blow you up and actually _do_ it if you did that."

"Yeah – it sure is tempting though. Sasori had to send him away finally so we could talk. He kept interrupting. Not that I had anything to say, but you know Sasori, anal to the last. If you tell him the leaf is red he wants to know what shade, which part of the leaf, where you saw the leaf, what time of day, the weather, and a million other things." Kabuto sighed, "I'm so glad to be home. I always feel like I survived a major event when I leave that man… puppet… whatever he is."

"Given his temper, I _would_ say you did survive a major event if you're able to walk away." Itachi added.

"You may be right about that!" Kabuto chuckled. "He… gave me a new assignment. I'm supposed to spy on Orochimaru."

Itachi instantly gave Kabuto his full attention. "How?"

"He said to figure it out myself. I don't even know where he is." Even though the smile never left Kabuto's face, Itachi saw that it was not reflected in the teen's eyes. "Well, I'm off! My team is going to go dig potatoes at a farm. Exciting, huh?"

"For you." Itachi smirked. He couldn't think when the last time he had seen the strange white-haired teen was. Perhaps two years, or maybe three? He certainly had to admit that he didn't miss him. Kabuto was one of the few people he had ever met that he couldn't read, and he didn't like that.

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Sarutobi sat back in his chair and looked across his desk at Fugaku. He had a feeling his time was running out and he wondered if he should play his final card. The elders were balking at any compromise and the Uchiha clan was tired of being discriminated against.

"It's been a year since we started talking, Sarutobi. You realize that, right?" Fugaku said coldly.

"Yes." The Hokage answered, then sighed in resignation. "I have one last option. It was something I wanted to do in a few years anyway, but perhaps…" He looked at Fugaku and saw the determination and power common in all shinobi. He was a strong man who had grown from a scared, wide-eyed toddler scarred by his father's death into the most powerful clan-leader in Konoha. "What would you say if I were to name Itachi Uchiha as Fifth Hokage?"

Of all the things he expected to hear the Third say, this was not one of them. Shocked he looked wide-eyed at the man in front of him. Was this some kind of joke? "Very funny. I'm supposed to believe an Uchiha would be allowed into such a position? The elders will block that for sure. What kind of a game are you playing?"

"I'm dead serious. I want him as the Fifth. If we weren't in this situation right now I would have waited a few years, until he was older, but if I name him now I can stand beside him and assist with his new duties. His potential easily places him among the most powerful in the village. In a few short years he _will_ be the most powerful, comparable to the Sannin." Sarutobi's stern voice was honest and sincere.

Fugaku sat back in his chair and stared at the Hokage, contemplating his words. Itachi had been relaying information to Danzou about the coup, acting as a double-agent. If he had any loyalty to the ROOT commander the clan could be in the same hot water as it was now. On the other hand, he was sure that Itachi did want a peaceful end to the present discord.

"What of the elders, Koharu and Homura? There is no way they are going to approve this."

"Leave that to me."

"And Itachi… what does he think of this?" Fugaku asked, still unconvinced that naming his son as Fifth Hokage would solve anything.

"He will probably refuse, but after it is explained that this is the best way to stop the conflict I am sure he will accept. He may have to rescind his claim to be clan chief, but you do have a second son who can fill that position." Sarutobi explained carefully.

"True. It does fit. Alright then… if you can pull it off it is acceptable." Fugaku closed his eyes and frowned.

"Thank-you, Fugaku. I will get back to you with the decision."

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Deep in thought Fugaku was walking across the porch outside of his meeting room when he noticed Itachi approaching him. The teen's eyes were downcast and he also seemed to be deep in thought. A couple seconds later Itachi walked past him without any indication he knew he was there. Fugaku stopped and looked back at his son, frowning. Once again he felt a strong desire to call out to him, but he still didn't know what he could say.

It had been a day since he had spoken to the Hokage and he was having trouble imagining the sullen, depressed boy his son had become wearing Hokage robes and standing next to Sarutobi. On the other hand, with the threat of the coup passed and Danzou's hold on him eliminated the possibility that Itachi would return to normal seemed inevitable.

He didn't entertain any thoughts that the clan would get special treatment from Itachi should he become the Fifth Hokage. However, Fugaku was sure that they would at least be treated fairly.

"Good morning… father."

Fugaku looked down, slightly taken aback. He had been so intent on Itachi that he hadn't noticed that Sasuke was standing right in front of him. The boy's cheeks were slightly pink and he was giving him a shy smile. It was cute. "Good morning. How's school going?" He couldn't think of anything else to ask.

Sasuke was pleasantly surprised by his father's question. Fugaku rarely paid any attention to him. Excited, he quickly answered, "Classes at school are boring. I'm always number one."

Looking down at his youngest son, Fugaku wondered if perhaps Sasuke was ready to learn the Fireball jutsu. He knew the boy had incredible potential, but as of yet he hadn't seen anything that rivaled the learning power of Itachi. "Come with me Sasuke." He turned around and walked to the entry way. Sasuke smiled and followed close behind him.

"Where are we going?"

"To the lake. I'm going to teach you something."

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A massive fireball, about forty feet in diameter shot out over the lake. Sasuke put his hands up in front of him and stepped back in shock. It was the most powerful jutsu he had ever seen. "Wow! Amazing!"

Fugaku brought his hands down to his side and looked at Sasuke. He almost smiled at the look of surprise on the boy's face. Unlike Itachi, Sasuke wasn't afraid to show his feelings and often you knew what he was thinking by the expression on his face.

"This is the basic jutsu of the Uchiha, the Fire Style Gokakyu no Jutsu, Fireball technique. You learned the signs a few minutes ago. After you do them, build up the chakra between your mouth and chest, and then let it go in one single breath."

Sasuke got a determined look on his face and ran up to the edge of the dock. "I got it!" He started to form the signs. 'I got to do this! Father is finally teaching me, paying attention to me, I can't let him down!'

Gathering chakra in his chest Sasuke formed the last of the signs, 'I can do it!' he thought with determination as he released his chakra in one breath.

A one foot diameter fireball was the result. It fizzled out almost immediately. The look of disappointment on Sasuke's face matched the disappointment Fugaku felt at seeing him fail.

"I thought so. Not quite like it was with Itachi." He turned around and started walking away. "It may have been too soon."

Sasuke watched as Fugaku walked away. Tears of frustration threatened to spill out of his eyes, but instead he turned around and looked over the lake. He wished he could talk to Itachi and find out how he had done the jutsu, but in his current mood he probably wouldn't answer.

"I will do this father, just you wait and see." He brought his hands up to form the signs again.

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"Sasuke's a cute kid, huh?" Fugaku smirked. He and Mikoto were lying in bed that evening, half asleep.

"Huh?" Mikoto mumbled.

"I showed him the fireball jutsu and he let out the smallest little fireball I've ever seen. The look of disappointment on his face was cute." Fugaku chuckled.

Mikoto turned around and looked at her husband. "He's always been a cute kid. The girls at his school are madly in love with him and follow him around everywhere."

"It makes me wish… I wish he was mine. I really regret what I did back then, Mikoto." Fugaku admitted.

Reaching across, Mikoto draped her arm around Fugaku's chest and rested her head on his shoulder. "I know. I've known all along. You have never treated him differently because of who his father is, and that lightens my heart whenever I think of…" Her voice trailed off and memories of Sasuke's birth flitted back and forth through her mind.

"I wish I had more time to spend with him. Perhaps afterward…"

"Perhaps…" Mikoto sighed as she closed her eyes. "And Fugaku… he is yours."

Fugaku smiled and pulled Mikoto closer to him.

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"_You said what_ to him?" Itachi's voice rose with disbelief as he asked the question.

Sarutobi smiled and sat back in his chair. "I have chosen you to take the position of Fifth Hokage. Fugaku has agreed that should this come to pass he will accept the decision."

"But… I'm not… I can't do something like that! I don't have the first idea how to do the job." Itachi replied, still too dumbstruck to believe what he had heard.

"I would stand by your side and assist for as long as possible. You are qualified, Itachi, that is more than evident to me. You are the strongest of your generation and your love of the village and dedication to protecting it is virtually unrivalled. It would be an honor for the village to have you as Hokage." Sarutobi continued to smile. "Please accept, if for no other reason that to help your clan."

"I will not accept for that reason, it would be selfish. But… to protect the village… I don't know how you will get it past the elders and Danzou will definitely be upset. But… if you can then I will accept the position." Itachi was not happy about the situation. He could feel his stomach knotting, wondering how he was going to handle Madara. He could just see himself taking a leave of absence so he could run around the countryside for Akatsuki. It wouldn't work out, he was sure of it.

"Leave the elders to me."

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"How dare he go behind our backs like this!" Homura banged his hand down on Danzou's table.

Koharu sat silently, pursing her lips in anger. She and Homura had been invited to Danzou's office to listen in on a conversation he promised would be "interesting". And it certainly had been just that.

The three sat in silence for a few minutes, lost in their own thoughts. Finally Koharu spoke softly. "It is completely within the prerogative of the current Hokage to choose his successor without consulting anyone. That was how he got Minato into the position of Fourth. And I think we all remember what _that_ was like."

"It _was_ a relief when he died." Danzou said patiently. "He stuck his nose into everything and seemed more interested in the individual than the collective. His connection to the Uchiha clan through his student was not in the best interest of the village."

"We have one option." Homura said, still angry. "We can have the Third declared incompetent. That would mean any decision he made would be automatically rescinded."

Koharu snorted, "And Yakushi is going to sign off on that? He is very friendly with the clans and as the chief medical officer we need his support."

Danzou chuckled lightly, "Then I guess we'll have to get a new chief medical officer."

"Danzou that is uncalled for. Loosing him would endanger the lives of countless shinobi under his care." Koharu said sternly.

The room was silent for a few minutes as the three sat, deep in thought. The sound of a heater switching on was the only noise in the unnaturally silent room.

Smiling, Homura finally broke the silence, "We could threaten to reveal Itachi's medical file to the village. He was treated for a mental breakdown at one point and tested for a psychotic condition that was never re-tested. That in and of itself is against procedure."

"Hmm. That might work. If the village thought their new Hokage was unstable it would definitely put a chink in Sarutobi's plans." Koharu grinned, "And the Daimyou would not be happy about it either."

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Itachi was perched in the woods next to the lake reading a book on fire jutsus. It was very old and the edges of the delicate pages were stiff and dark brown. So far, the book contained no new information, but he didn't feel like putting it back and getting another one so he continued to read. The branch he was reclining on was hanging out over the water and when he looked down he could see his reflection in the clear water. He sighed, thinking that he still looked like a short, skinny kid.

A noise forced him to look away from his reflection and across the lake. Itachi smiled when he saw it was Sasuke. The boy had been spending almost all of his free time standing at the edge of the dock practicing the fireball jutsu. Every day he improved, but it was never good enough and so he would return the next day. After a few hours, exhausted and nearly out of chakra he would return home to eat and sleep. Mikoto would watch him, occasionally, from the park, but Sasuke never noticed. The look on her face was pained, as if she felt sorry for him.

He remembered her looking at him like that sometimes. When he trained too hard or his father pushed him too far Mikoto's eyes would fill with sorrow. Itachi wondered what she was thinking as she watched Sasuke, but that was a question that would never be answered.

Sasuke's cheeks were bandaged, and there were singe marks around his lips. He had to be in a lot a pain, burns were amongst the most painful of injuries, yet he never stopped. Itachi knew that their father did not expect him to master the jutsu for a while, but Sasuke seemed to have set some kind of a goal for himself.

Itachi remembered the offer Danzou had made to him. If he handed Sasuke and the twins over to him to raise he would allow them to live. They would grow up with the other young children Danzou was collecting. Emotionless fighters who obeyed his every command, never thinking of "self". He couldn't do that to them, no matter how much he thought about it. A life with no joy and nothing to look forward to. It would be the life of a zombie, existing but not living. Surely death was more favorable.

"If I am able to become Hokage," Itachi said softly, "Danzou will be the first person on my list. He… he is evil incarnate."

Itachi jumped down from the tree as the sun dipped over the horizon. Soon it would be too dark to read comfortably. He exited the woods near Sheeta's house and walked onto the road. He saw his girlfriend and her mother talking animatedly near the gate of their house. They waved him over and he jogged up to them.

"Did you hear what happened?" Emi said, her voice full of sorrow and disbelief.

"Umm… I don't think so…" Itachi answered carefully. He realized he hadn't spoken to his parents in several days.

Sheeta grabbed his hand, "Rumiko's twins are missing!"

Itachi stared at her in shock. "What about their grandparents?"

"They were knocked unconscious." She answered glumly. "I don't know any more than that. My four hour shift ended and I had to come home. Apparently though, it happened last night some time, but no one noticed until the Go club at the temple went looking for Umihiko's father when he didn't show up."

"I'm sure they're okay. If they bothered to take them instead of killing them outright it could mean they want them safe, at least for a while." Itachi tried to reassure the two women.

"Yeah, that's what we're hoping." Emi said, a small smile playing on her lips.

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Itachi stormed into the dormitory at the ANBU building. If Danzou had taken the children they should be here somewhere. He saw about fifteen boys sitting at desks dutifully reading. They all turned and looked at him, blank faces that didn't question his authority or wonder why he was there. He recognized the two boys he and Yuri had brought to the village a couple years earlier. They were quiet, now, and didn't attempt to call out to him. It was disturbing and Itachi quickly made his way to the back of the room and through another door.

"You aren't supposed to be in here." An ANBU woman said sternly. "Get out!"

"No." Itachi said calmly. He walked over to three cribs lined up against the wall and looked in them. Three infants stared up at him and smiled, waving their hands in the air. None of them were Rumiko's.

"Are these the only babies here?" Itachi activated his Sharingan and glared at the woman. She backed away defensively. Two other women, also ANBU, ran into the room from a door opposite the one Itachi had entered through.

"What's going on in here?" One of the new arrivals yelled.

"Are these the only babies?" Itachi repeated.

"Yes! Of course. You think its easy finding abandoned infants? They're usually dead by the time we get to them." One of the ANBU replied, rather caustically.

Itachi turned around and left the room. Danzou probably wouldn't put them where he could find them anyway. Plus, the underground was massive. Searching it would take weeks. If the twins were here they could be hidden rather effectively. He started walking towards Danzou's office, but stopped after a few steps. The ROOT commander would never admit to taking them, so questioning him would be pointless. Besides, there was one other alternative. Itachi left the building and returned to his house.

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"Where are they, Madara?" Itachi spoke quietly, clenching his old bracelet tightly, in his right hand.

"_Who?"_ Madara replied cautiously.

"Rumiko's twins."

Madara answered slowly, _"In…their cribs?"_

"Nice answer, Madara. Where are the cribs, then? And before you say 'in their house' I think you ought to reconsider your attitude." Itachi was getting angry. He had been on edge for weeks and felt like Madara was trying to push him over.

Madara was silent for a minute. _"Itachi, they are on their way to Mist."_

This time it was Itachi's turn to be quiet. Madara continued speaking, _"I knew you would be unable to decide who to spare so I made one choice for you."_

Itachi considered the man's actions. It was not what he wanted. It was hard enough steeling himself to do his assigned mission, but to have Madara go behind his back like this was… Itachi closed his eyes… it was a relief. Although… if he left them alive it would be contrary to his orders. Of course, if there was a branch of the Uchiha clan in Mist village already then it would be impossible for him to wipe out the entire clan anyway. Sending the infants there now was a good idea. They would have no memories whatsoever of Konoha, feel no allegiance to it.

"_Itachi? Are you there?"_ Madara asked, concerned.

"Yes. I just… Don't let them know who their parents are or where they were born. You can… maybe Aya can pretend to be their mother. Technically she's old enough to have children." Itachi said quietly.

"_Aya is dead, Itachi."_ Madara smirked.

"Yeah, and the sky is purple." Itachi answered sarcastically.

"_I have a couple lined up to care for them already. But I will abide by your wishes. What of Sasuke?"_ Madara answered.

"I will kill him." Itachi said plainly. He realized Madara was his little brother's father and he was mildly surprised that the man had kidnapped Rumiko's twins instead of his own son. 'He's probably up to something.' Itachi thought to himself.

Madara gave a short chuckle, _"Then I will not mention it again."_

The communication was cut and Itachi laid back on his bed feeling depressed and defeated. Closing his eyes he started to drift off when his door banged open and Fugaku's voice brought him back to full consciousness.

"Where are they, Itachi?" He asked angrily.

Itachi had to resist the urge to laugh at the irony of the question, "On their way to Mist. We won't be able to catch up to them, so just wait a few weeks and we'll deal with it then."

"Dammit! What is that man up to?" Fugaku cursed loudly.

Itachi laid his head back on his pillow and sighed. "World domination is the short answer. What that has to do with the twins will be determined later."

Fugaku looked down at his son. "I…" he wanted to say something to Itachi, but he was still at a loss as to what exactly that should be. The disappointment from the discovery of his son's betrayal still stung, and each day it dug deeper and deeper. However, he still couldn't bring himself to feel anger or hatred. Itachi had always been special to him, he realized that a long time ago when he had sat by the side of the road after he had been kidnapped.

_Fugaku couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief that the bodies were not that of his son. He swallowed a couple soldier pills and walked back through the brush to the road. The clan lord had not slept in two or three days. He wasn't sure anymore. There had been so much to do – it was like the village had woken up one morning and decided to go on a crime spree. Riots, thefts, kidnapping, murder, patricide….what else could go wrong? Crime in Konoha was usually higher than in a regular non-shinobi village, but this was ridiculous. _

_The sun set and sky started to turn midnight blue. What if Itachi was dead? Mikoto couldn't have anymore children. Not without a repeat of the problems she had with Sasuke. And he sure as hell couldn't either. He didn't want another child anyway. He wanted Itachi. He wanted his genius son._

_Walking up the road he went over the kidnapping clues again. For the millionth time. Nothing stood out. He thought about everything they had been through together in the last two years. The gathering at the hideout, training, and he remembered hurting his son. Cringing he suddenly felt very guilty. How could he have done that? Broken a four-year-old's arm? He couldn't defend himself yet. It would be years before he was at that level. What was he thinking?_

_Fugaku stopped walking and sat down on the side of the road and put his head in his hands. He had been taking too many soldier pills and he started to recognize the first sign of overdose. Anxiety. He had made a promise to himself not to sleep until he found his son, and he would keep it._

And when he had found him a few minutes later.

_He reached out and put his hand on his son's head. _

"_It's you. You're really okay. I… Itachi I'm sorry I was using you to bait the kidnapper. I'm sorry…" Fugaku cleared his throat and continued to stroke his son's hair._

_Itachi slowly opened his eyes and smiled. "Father. I…" his eyes closed, then opened again. "Killed him." The boy's eyes roamed to a bundle, also wrapped in a blanket and sitting a couple feet away._

_Fugaku reached for the bundle and opened it. Shock quickly turned to pride. His son had killed the murderer. His son! Not someone else's kid. His! _

"_That's my boy, Itachi. You are my son. You are my heir. I am very proud of you." He put his hand on the boy's shoulder, but pulled back when Itachi winced in pain. Lowering the blanket a little he could see the cuts on his chest. He pulled the blanket completely off and stared. The boy had been beaten rather savagely. Fugaku reached down and put his hand on his son's chest, over the cuts. It must have taken a lot of determination to overcome this kind of pain to fight well enough to kill._

Closing his eyes Fugaku said, "At least we know they are safe. I'll have to think up something to let the others know it's okay if we put off the investigation for a while."

"Tell them its part of Aya's mission. Wait a few days, then say that some people found out who she is and kidnapped the babies to use against her. She killed the kidnappers and is holding the babies until you or me come get them. Until then, they are safely away from the coming conflict." Itachi responded matter of factly.

Fugaku gave a short chuckle. "You are brilliant, Itachi, I'll give you that. I'll use your story, it's perfect."

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Sasuke ran throughout the house and searching for his father. It was still early morning and he was sure he hadn't left for work yet.

"Why do we have such a big house anyway?" Sasuke muttered. At around five thousand square feet and on two stories it had a lot of hallways and rooms, most of which were empty and unused since Mikoto didn't want to have to clean them. Because of that the family only used a few of the rooms on the ground floor.

"Father!" Sasuke ran up to Fugaku, out of breath. He caught him walking on the porch outside of his meeting room.

"Come see my Fireball jutsu!" He said excitedly.

Fugaku looked down at him, "It's only been a week, Sasuke, it's too early to teach you again."

"No! I'm not asking you to teach me. I want you to watch me. I'm saying I've got the knack of it!" Sasuke pleaded with his father.

Fugaku looked closer at his son's face. There were burns around his mouth and bandages on both of his lower cheeks. 'He must have been practicing all week.' He thought to himself. "Okay, let's go. I have a few minutes to spare right now."

Once down at the lake Sasuke got a determined look on his face and walked up to the edge of the wooden pier. Forming hand signs he put his hand up to his mouth and silently ordered himself to succeed. Letting out his chakra in one breath he leaned back slightly as a huge fireball, the same size as the one Fugaku had made a week earlier danced across the lake.

Fugaku's eyes opened wide in shock. It was unbelievable. The boy went from nothing to spectacular in only seven days. Just as they suspected, Sasuke was a genius after all. It just took longer for him to show it. Fugaku turned around and started walking away.

Sasuke, who had been very excited when he had seen Fugaku's startled expression, dropped his head as he was overcome with feelings of dejection and abandonment.

Fugaku stopped walking about twenty feet away from Sasuke. "That's my boy." He said clearly.

Sasuke's head jerked up and his previous gloom was replaced with delight.

"Well done. From now on, live up to the crest on your back and soar to great heights." Fugaku started walking again, but stopped after only a few steps.

"And Sasuke… Stop chasing after your brother." Fugaku sighed and walked back to the house, leaving a bewildered Sasuke standing on the pier wondering what was going on.

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**Next week chapter 64 – "The Beginning of the End"**

**Please review.**


	64. Chapter 64 The Beginning of the End

**Thanks for all the reviews and fav's! **

**This is the chapter that will be rewritten to be the sequel's first chapter. You might be able to pick out the spot where the two "realities" split (that is, where the massacre did happen and the one where it didn't). But then again, there are probably a dozen different spots here that fit that description xD**

**(I almost forgot to post this – I didn't realize it was Friday already o_O)**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto, but Hinata really wishes he'd share.**

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**Chapter 64 – The Beginning of the End**

Shock and disappointment were the two dominant emotions Sarutobi felt as he looked at the document in front of him. He had announced his intention to make Itachi Uchiha the Fifth Hokage at that morning's meeting. They had not received it well and now… three hours later he was looking at a paper outlining the actions that would be taken by the elders should he go through with his plan.

Sarutobi had known Homura and Koharu his entire life. The three were from the first generation to grow up in Konoha. They had the First and Second Hokages as their Senseis and had listened attentively to their lectures and believed in their ideals. When Sarutobi was named as the Third he was about the age Itachi was now. He worked closely with the First and Second to learn the ins and outs of running Konoha.

His personal life had suffered the most over the years. Two marriages had ended in divorce with both of his ex-wives dying on missions, leaving him to raise his two sons alone. His eldest son and daughter-in-law had died three years previously, also on a mission, this time leaving behind a young infant that Sarutobi was currently raising. His youngest son, who was now in his early twenties had run off to work as a ninja in service to the Daimyou and hadn't so much as sent a postcard in over a year. He tried not to dwell on everything too much… it was still difficult. Besides, he had his grandson, who was currently napping on the couch in his office. His light breathing was usually soothing, but right now, there was just too much going on to take comfort in even a toddler's innocence.

The message he was staring at was very clear, "It has come to our attention that Itachi is an unstable individual who has, in the past, been hospitalized and removed from active duty due to said instability. Should he be named Hokage, it would be in the best interest of the village to be informed of his mental condition, and we would have to begin steps to have the present Hokage declared incompetent to fulfill his duties."

Looking out over the sunny village, Sarutobi considered the message. He could definitely gloss over Itachi's mental problems, after all no ninja was completely sane. It was impossible in a line of work that required murder and stealth to be a way of life and remain "normal". However, the part that concerned him was the last sentence. To have him declared "incompetent", as they put it, would require the signatures of the two elders, the head of ANBU, and the chief medical officer. Homura, Koharu, Danzou and Yakushi.

Yakushi wouldn't sign it. Sarutobi knew that for a fact. However, he found he could no longer trust Danzou. If Yakushi didn't bend to that man's will, Danzou would kill him without a second thought. He couldn't loose such a skilled medic, and the chances that he could protect him from the skilled ROOT assassins that Danzou had trained was probably zero. He slammed his fist down on the table.

"Gampa," a sleepy voice came from the couch, "I'm tired. You woke me up." Sounds of sniffling and a couple whimpers made Sarutobi rise from his chair and walk over to the other side of the room.

"I'm sorry, Konohamaru." Picking up the three-year-old he walked back and forth for a while until he fell asleep again. Laying the toddler back down on the couch he covered him back up with a small blanket and sat down on the opposite couch. 'What now?' he thought to himself.

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Itachi was in the woods next to the lake resting. He had been training since daybreak and as noon approached the unseasonably warm October weather had him sweating. He had pulled out a book of water jutsus and was reading when Sheeta found him. Smiling, he invited her to sit down next to him.

"If you wanted to be alone, you shouldn't sit next to a lake on a beautiful fall day." She teased as she sat down.

"Maybe I didn't really want to be alone, then." Out of habit he lifted his arm and wrapped it around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him.

"Lately, when we are together, you still look like you're alone. Are you sure you're okay?" Sheeta was concerned.

"I'm fine. Have you seen Sasuke's fireball yet?"

"Who hasn't? He's shown it to everyone who looks sideways at him." Sheeta laughed. "I even got a picture of it."

"That'll make him happy, I bet. So why did you come to the lake?" Itachi finally asked.

"It was bored at home. I have today off and I was missing Aya again. We would come here and go swimming. She loved the water. I mean… _loves_ the water. I keep thinking of her in the past tense, she's been gone so long."

"Did you bring your suit?" Itachi noticed she wasn't carrying anything.

"No. I don't feel like swimming actually. You may think sixty-eight degrees is swimming weather, but I sure don't."

"Hn." Itachi went back to reading, but noticed after a few minutes that Sheeta was now resting her head in his lap and was sound asleep. He smiled, in spite of his mood. Sheeta was innocent and caring. She had a maternal streak that belied her age. She also had a sense of humor and loved to tease people. He could have easily spent the next sixty years with her by his side.

Frowning he looked out over the lake. Such fantasies could never come true.

"Itachi?" Sheeta apparently wasn't completely asleep yet.

"Yeah?"

"Right now is real. This moment, this point in time. We should live this moment and not worry about what tomorrow brings." Sheeta said quietly.

Itachi was puzzled. "What soap opera did that come from?"

"I don't know they all look the same to me. It was on this morning's episode. But… even though it's massively corny… I think it's true."

"It is, Sheeta." Itachi had to agree. There was probably nothing wrong with enjoying this particular afternoon. At least for a little while. For her sake.

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Messengers delivered two different scrolls the next morning; one to Fugaku and one to Itachi. The message to Fugaku stated that the plan to make Itachi the Fifth Hokage fell through, but reconciliation would still be possible if was patient. The message to Itachi explained that the Third wanted him as the Fifth, but he would have to wait a few years, and he was overriding Danzou's mission and ordering him to "stand down". Both father and son had exactly the same reaction: Sarutobi could go to hell.

Fugaku was ready, at last, to enter the final stages of his plan now that talks had completely broken down. He immediately left the house to begin preparations.

Itachi was disappointed at Sarutobi's inability to control his council and stand up to Danzou. He was also angry that the Third didn't seem to understand the threat his clan could pose to the village. But above all, he was scared. Frightened of the task that now spread itself out ahead of him. The deaths he would cause, the disappointment he would see in their eyes as he struck them down, the loneliness he would feel as he walked the Earth alone, without a family, until finally he died in battle or sickness. But Konoha and Fire country would be safe. That made it all worth it, right? Itachi wasn't sure about that anymore, but he would do his duty, just the same.

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It was at 2:47am that Itachi finally realized that he could not kill his brother. Everyone else, even his parents and Sheeta, he could kill them, although it would be hard. But not Sasuke. However, he didn't want to send the boy to Mist. It would be a cruel life, the shinobi there were warlike and known for their love of battle. Not to mention the fact that Madara would likely sink his talons into the boy. There was really only one solution: Sasuke would have to stay in Konoha.

Itachi had exacted a promise from Madara to keep his hands off of Konoha; in return he would assist in the mission. That meant that if Sasuke remained in Konoha, Madara would have to leave him alone. That part of the plan was easy enough to figure out, but the part about exactly how any Uchiha could remain alive, especially a vulnerable child, when his mission had called for the extermination of the entire clan took a few more hours to figure out.

In the end Itachi decided he would approach Sarutobi afterward and beg him to take Sasuke under his personal protection. After all, at that point, he would owe him a huge favor. And Danzou… he would deal with him as well.

Itachi realized the sun was coming up and decided to go for a walk. Another sunny day revealed a very disturbing revelation. He stealthily moved throughout the Uchiha compound, looking into the temple, restaurants, stores and common areas as well as a few houses. Having made a quick count he returned to his room and laid down on his bed.

It was a shock, and even though he expected it to happen, it was still a shock. Itachi's heart was pounding and his breathing sped up. _Every single Uchiha was in the compound._ No one was left at the Hideout. That meant the attack was literally hours away. At least forty-eight, at most seventy-two.

Sitting up, Itachi made his way to the secret compartment in his floor and started pulling things out. He filled his backpack first. His Akatsuki uniform and supplies were put into the pack. He fingered the necklace around his neck as he looked at the photo of himself and Sheeta holding Rumiko's twins. Something wet dropped onto his hand and he looked at it incomprehensively for a minute before realizing it was a tear. He quickly wiped his eyes.

Dr. Motoi's book about Johnny the normal boy was extracted next from the hole. He read a couple chapters before putting it back and sealing the hole. There was no point in looking at anything else. It was too painful.

He clutched his bracelet and called Madara.

"_Itachi?"_ Madara's voice revealed no emotion.

"Tomorrow." Itachi said simply.

"_Time?" _

"Around 6pm. I'll contact you again to let you know when to enter. As soon as we begin the attack all the Uchihas will fall back to the compound to defend it. You will start at the front gate and work your way in. I'll hit the houses and get the people inside. If I don't contact you, do nothing."

"_Understood. Itachi? You realize that unlike you I am looking forward to this. I will feel no loss or sorrow over their passing."_ Madara's voice was still neutral.

"Yes. I know." Itachi replied as he cut contact.

Grabbing the backpack Itachi made his way outside of the village to hide it.

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Fugaku and about twenty other Uchihas gathered in the temple that evening. The mood was determined and slightly grim. The clan lord had no misconceptions about the havoc he was about to cause.

"The first attack will place us in a position to overthrow the government and place ourselves in its place. After that we will have the loyal Konoha ninjas to deal with. Remember, these will be our fellow shinobi. We should try to reason with them first, get them to see things our way and cooperate to strengthen the village. Barring that, go ahead and kill them.

"The shinobi clans from the Hideout will arrive in time for the secondary attack hours after the first battle ends. They will take over the fighting as our clansmen clean up and help get people to the hospital. Yakushi will be on duty, although he has not been told of the coup, as a doctor he will still help all injured. Uchiha will move people to safe havens and set up distribution of food and other supplies. Above all, be helpful and friendly, even if you have to put on an act."

"What about Itachi?" One of the elders asked.

"If for some reason I am unable to take out Sarutobi he will take my place and finish the battle." Fugaku lied easily and the people gathered accepted his word.

"That is all. You have the orders for your teams. Rest tomorrow, for the next day we fight to regain our lost dignity." Fugaku said calmly.

A few minutes later Fugaku and Mikoto were the only ones left in the secret chamber. "I'll disable Itachi tomorrow evening." Fugaku said quietly.

"How?" Mikoto's voice was worried.

"I should be able to knock him unconscious. Even though he doesn't completely trust me, he does allow me to get close enough to touch him. I'll then stick him in one of the isolation cells. Honoo was moved to the regular civilian prison this morning so Itachi will be the only one in there. I will also attach chakra limiting bracelets."

Mikoto nodded once, although she was frowning. "When can he come out again?"

"That depends on him." Fugaku answered. "Right before I deal with Itachi, you will remove Sasuke from the house and bring him here."

"Yes." Mikoto nodded again. "It'll be hard for him, but the others who won't be fighting will be here as well. Auntie said she would look after him."

Fugaku smiled, "Finally, Mikoto, it begins."

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"Mother…" Sasuke was eating his breakfast. It was just himself and Mikoto in the kitchen.

"Yes Sasuke, dear?" Mikoto turned around from the sink to look at her son.

"What does… what does father really think of Itachi and me?" He asked shyly.

"What do you mean?" The question didn't really make sense.

"Well… the other day… father said 'that's my boy' to me. But that's what he always says to Itachi. So… I was really happy."

"Well that's good!" Mikoto said cheerfully.

"But… Itachi and father aren't getting along so… maybe… I'm just a replacement for Itachi."

Mikoto was shocked at her son's intuition but hid her feelings. The boy was very perceptive, every bit as perceptive as his brother had been at that age. 'How did I miss something this big?' She asked herself.

Sighing she walked over to the table, "Itachi is his own person and you are your own person. Father cares about both of you."

"Then how come all I hear is 'Itachi this' and 'Itachi that'? Sasuke yelled.

Sighing again, Mikoto paused for a second, thinking about how she was going to explain things to her son. He was telling the truth, but she didn't want him to see it as proof that Fugaku didn't care for him.

"That isn't true, Sasuke. As clan leader, father's responsibility is to protect the clan."

Sasuke interrupted, "So what?"

"Itachi is older, so he's entrusted with performing clan duties. Father is in charge of those duties so that's why it seems as if he spends more time with Itachi." She paused and then pointed at her face, "But just between you and me, when we're alone, he talks about you all the time. You know father… he's quiet and sullen looking all the time. He just has trouble showing his feelings." Mikoto smiled as she saw Sasuke's mood lighten. He smiled and breathed out in relief. Then jumped when he heard Fugaku walk in and set his cup on the table. Mikoto refilled it then went back to the sink.

Sasuke looked at his father and was suddenly reminded of Itachi's Sharingan two years ago. "Father?"

"Hmm?"

"Are there different kinds of Sharingan?"

"Already interested in Sharingan? It's too early, Sasuke. It's nothing like Fire Style jutsus."

"But… I'll master it someday… because I'm your son!" Sasuke was so earnest in his statement that Fugaku had to smile.

"There is a higher level ocular jutsu than the Sharingan. Called the Mangekyou Sharingan. It's legendary and only occurs in a few Uchihas. I've heard it requires a very special set of circumstances in order to manifest." Fugaku spoke lightly, trying to dissuade his son from any further questions. With Itachi, he had tried to hide the information, but he decided that he should take a different route with Sasuke and perhaps be a little more up-front.

'So that's what he showed back then. Itachi has this Mangekyou Sharingan. But does father know? Why did he tell me not to chase after him anymore?' Sasuke thought deeply about this information, but it just made him more confused.

"Father?"

"Hmm?" Fugaku gave his son another small smile. The boy was full of questions this morning.

"Why doesn't big brother pay attention to me, even though I'm his little brother?"

Fugaku looked down at the table and closed his eyes. "Itachi… is different. He has always had trouble getting close to people." It was a simplified explanation, but going into the psychological theories of psychosis, alienation and trauma would probably be a little too advanced for an eight-year-old boy.

"Why?" Sasuke asked, very concerned.

"Who knows? I can't read him, and I'm the boy's father." Fugaku's words were full of the helplessness he was feeling in his heart, and spoke to depths much deeper than Sasuke's question. Mikoto turned around and gave her husband a sad look.

Sasuke didn't ask anymore questions and when he finished his tea he ran out of the kitchen. He had only fifteen minutes to get to school before the first bell rang.

"He's getting suspicious, isn't he?" Fugaku asked quietly.

"He's a very perceptive boy. Lately, he's been spending a lot of time thinking, but right now it just seems to be about relationships – how you feel about him and Itachi and how Itachi feels about him. I wouldn't worry about it too much." Mikoto smiled and sat down at the table, pouring herself a cup of tea.

"Hmm." Fugaku kept reviewing the conversation, and realized that Sasuke must have seen Itachi's Mangekyou Sharingan as some point. Probably accidentally. He was sure Itachi wouldn't have shown it to his little brother on purpose.

Fugaku looked at the kitchen door when he heard Itachi and Sasuke talking in the entryway. They were probably putting on their shoes, getting ready to leave. 'Perhaps I should incapacitate him now instead of tonight.' Fugaku thought to himself. He started to stand up, but then decided he was being paranoid and sat back down. There wasn't anything Itachi could do at this point anyway.

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Sasuke ran out of the hall carrying his lunch and book bag, but stopped in the entry way when he saw Itachi sitting down on a step putting on his shoes. He wore his ANBU uniform and was frowning.

"Big brother," Sasuke said hesitantly, "could you… help me with my Shuriken jutsu tonight?"

"I'm busy, why don't you ask father?" Itachi said hastily.

"You're better at it. Even I can see that." Sasuke sulked.

Itachi waved his brother over and Sasuke walked closer. Reaching out his hand he tapped the boy on the forehead with his fingers. "Maybe next time, Sasuke." He turned around and looked at the floor. Sasuke saw the dark circles under his eyes, but didn't think twice about it.

Standing up Itachi started walking out the door, "I don't have time for this now."

Sasuke rubbed his forehead, "You always say the same thing and then jab me in the forehead. You never have time anymore." His morose words were ignored as Itachi disappeared from view. He sat down to put his own shoes on. "I guess he's still the same as always… what a relief."

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Walking away from Sasuke that morning was one of the hardest things Itachi had ever done. Only a few hours earlier he had finally worked out the finishing touches of his plan to save his little brother. It was cruel and would break the young boy's heart but he felt it was the only solution. At least, the only one he could think of in his present state of mind.

Itachi had not slept for two days straight and had very little sleep in the preceding weeks following the assignment of his final Konoha mission. When he did drift off it was to horrible nightmares that would disturb his sleep and haunt his waking hours. Itachi knew from his training that sleep deprived of dreams would drive one insane, so when the body did drift off it would try to make up for it by dreaming. And that was exactly what his body was doing. There were no more dreams of Shisui's laughing face or Sasuke and Sheeta smiling and talking. All his dreams now were filled with murder and blood, and even zombies as his clan rose up from their graves to hunt him down.

The message the Hokage had sent him the previous day kept threading itself through his mind. Sarutobi didn't want him to kill his clan. He remembered his original plan; take out his father and the other leaders of the coup and place himself in the leadership. He could still do that, he realized. However…

Itachi closed his eyes and quickly sat down on the ground as a wave of dizziness passed over him. Lack of sleep was definitely affecting more than just his dreams. Looking up he realized he was at the lake. Standing up he moved over to the bench and sat down again. He remembered that when he and Shisui would sit there, they always sat in the same spots. Reaching out his hand he placed on the empty space next to him. More than ever before, he found himself wishing Shisui was there right now, to tell him what to do… what the _right_ thing to do was. But he wasn't.

"And to think he wanted me to be the Fifth. I can't even think straight enough to make a decision this important… He's a fool." Itachi mumbled to himself.

Time passed; quickly or slowly Itachi was never able to remember clearly which. Eventually 5:45pm arrived and he rose from the bench and walked back home. If he couldn't incapacitate his parents first, then there was no point calling Madara. The plan would fail.

As he walked away from the lake he sensed someone in a tree nearby and turned around to look. It was an ANBU. To be more specific, a member of ROOT. He recognized the chakra as belonging to a ninja he had only met once. Itachi nodded once to him and the man disappeared. Obviously Danzou was spying on him. The compound would now be cut off from the rest of the village and no one would enter until the task was done.

Itachi suddenly realized he hadn't seen Yuri in a long time. Not since he had trained with her a few weeks earlier. He hoped she would be okay, after all, she, like Sasuke, had nothing to do with the coup. Although unlike Sasuke, she did know it was going to happen.

Entering his house he sensed Fugaku and Mikoto in the kitchen. He could hear them making small talk and drinking tea. The sun was setting outside and the hall lights weren't on yet. The semi-darkness was more than enough for Itachi to see in, though, as he made his way into the kitchen.

Standing in the doorway he looked at parents and steeled himself for what he would have to do. He had a two part plan when it came to his parents, and part one was about to commence.

"Oh, Itachi. Would you like some dinner tonight? Sasuke isn't back yet, but I can get you something." Mikoto smiled at him, completely oblivious about what was about to happen.

Fugaku looked up at him as well. "Are you feeling well? You look like you have a fever."

Itachi lifted one hand and moved his index finger sideways. Fugaku and Mikoto's gaze moved to his hand. The Genjutsu was cast so quickly that his parents were instantly rendered unconscious. It was one of the techniques he had learned from Madara's scrolls. It had been one of the most difficult jutsus to master and the only one he had ever seen that could cast a Genjutsu without using ones eyes or hand signs. He was relieved it had worked, but a small part of him was also feeling guilty. It meant that his parents trusted him enough to drop their guard around him, and now he was breaking that trust.

Itachi pulled out a senbon coated with a sleeping potion and poked a small hole in each of their necks. He then checked them and found they were in a deep sleep. Only he would be able to awaken them. That would have to wait until later. Perhaps it was arrogance or desperation, but Itachi wished to have one last conversation with the man who would have started the fourth ninja war.

Turning around and looking at the kitchen he shut off the stove and made sure the sink faucet was off as well. No point in burning down the house. He grabbed his father under the arms and dragged him to an empty room next to the meeting room. He then returned and dragged his mother to the same room. Laying them side by side he sighed and readjusted his headband. When he was finished he would return.

Itachi stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out the bracelet. He paused for moment, realizing the gravity of what he was about to do. But… it was for a good cause… it was going to benefit Konoha… and Sasuke would be safe…

Too many doubts entered his thoughts. He knew he was no longer thinking straight. His head was fuzzy from lack of sleep and his legs felt weak. He also realized that his ears were buzzing; his right one was especially loud.

"The mission." Itachi mumbled to himself. "It's just a mission."

Concentrating on the bracelet he called out to Madara.

"_I'm nearby."_ Madara said calmly. There was no other hint of emotion.

"Begin." Itachi said grimly, then cut the communication. He took a step forward and collapsed onto the floor when his legs gave out and his heart dropped down into his stomach. Tears forced themselves out of his eyes and he found himself sobbing bitterly as the sounds of battle erupted from a street nearby. Looking up he saw he was only a few inches from his father. He reached out and put his hand on his arm, then sat up.

"I have to finish this. I can't be like this." Itachi wiped off his face and stood up. Composing himself into an unemotional ANBU ninja he used a jutsu to disappear.

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Over the next thirty minutes he moved from house to house. Using his Genjutsu to knock the inhabitants unconscious he would slit their throats then move on to the next house. Walking into Sheeta's house was difficult. By this time everyone was alerted that something was going on. Some were barricading themselves, others were standing and fighting. Sheeta's family, however, greeted Itachi with open arms.

"Itachi! What's going on?" Sheeta ran across the room and looked closely at the teenager in front of her. "What's… what's wrong with you?" Itachi had a cold look in his eyes and his face registered no emotion. Sheeta subconsciously moved away from him and her mother and sister did so as well.

"Sheeta, I love you. I want you to know that." There was no emotion behind the words and the girl looked at him, alarmed.

"I… love you too, Itachi." She whispered.

"I will never love another woman, and if we meet again, I hope you can… if not forgive then at least understand." Itachi's tone didn't change as he spoke.

"Wh… what are you talking about?" Sheeta moved closer and touched his arm. Emi and Nui were standing next to each other, worried. Emi's husband had run out to join the battle when they heard the attack begin and hadn't returned yet.

Itachi brought up his hand again and the three women fell to the ground unconscious. They died quickly, and Itachi almost collapsed again as he exited the house. Memories of the past tried to force there way up into his conscious mind, but he pushed them back down. He wasn't finished yet.

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It was around 7:00pm when the battle finally ended. Itachi and Madara made one last sweep of the compound, counting up the deceased and when everyone was finally accounted for Madara smiled and let loose a big sigh.

"I have wanted to do that for more years than even I know. I would thank you, but it would be in bad taste." Madara laughed.

Itachi scowled at the elder Uchiha. "Remember our agreement."

"Of course. I see you have left Sasuke out of this, and Fugaku and Mikoto aren't dead yet." Madara looked toward the main house, "I will miss Mikoto. In another lifetime, Itachi, I would have found a way to win her from Fugaku and make her my wife. I must admit, she is my one regret. I considered… taking her when I saw her a few minutes ago. But…" He looked closely at Itachi, "she is in love with Fugaku."

"Her death will be painless and quick." Itachi replied in a monotone. However, inside he wondered if his old sensei was in love with his mother. He then said something that he would never had said if he was in his right mind, "You were playing with her all this time… you were pretending to give her information…"

Madara countered, a little bitterly, "Fugaku does not want to admit to feeling emotion. He asked Mikoto to allow me to continue to come to her in the belief that I would trade information for sex. However, he knew that Mikoto loved him and he was afraid that he would love her back. He hoped she would fall in love with me instead, but would stay with him."

Itachi blinked in surprise and opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it. He couldn't think of anything to say to that revelation.

"I must admit, I hoped for the same thing. And I was a little disappointed that she was not jealous of Aya. That proved, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she loved Fugaku and no other."

Itachi nodded once and looked at the ground, his resolve momentarily stumbled as he realized how hard it must have been for his father to have played that twisted little game with his wife. It was wrong, though. It had to have been wrong. No sane man would do something like that to his wife, would they? So why did he suddenly feel sorry for him? And his mother… she had gone along with it, but never wavered, never lost her resolve. She would love Fugaku forever. He wished Madara had not said anything. It would have been so much easier if he hadn't found out just how human his parents really were.

Madara changed the subject. "Kisame is nearby; when you are finished meet up with him. I don't want you to be alone for a while."

Itachi snorted, "Afraid I'll kill myself?"

"Yes, quite frankly, I am. You are not in your right mind at the moment and I need you for Akatsuki. Here are some tranquilizers. Take them and sleep for a few days." Madara's matter of fact assessment of the situation took Itachi a little bit by surprise. Itachi took the small plastic bag and noticed four pills were inside. He pocketed it and looked back up at the man in front of him. He was treating the whole thing like nothing had happened, like Itachi was just a kid who was "under the weather" and needed some extra attention. He suspected that the reason he was given only four pills instead of the whole bottle was because if he decided to take them all at once it wouldn't be fatal. Also, having Kisame pick him up was another preventative measure. The shark man would watch out for him and keep him from doing something stupid.

"Does Kisame know about what is happening here?" Itachi asked quietly.

"No. Pein passed on that you will be joining him full time. Both Kisame and Pein will be suspicious that something happened and will no doubt hear of the massacre as news threads its way through the ninja community."

"Okay." Itachi and Madara turned their heads as they heard the sound of running feet. "Sasuke is home. You can leave now, I'll deal with the rest."

Madara nodded once and disappeared. It was then that Itachi realized the man did not have his mask on. He had revealed his true face to the people he had killed.

Jumping up on a telephone pole to get a better view of the front gate Itachi saw Sasuke running into the compound. The boy stopped and looked up at him, but Itachi was already gone.

Materializing back in the room he left his parents he raised his hands to perform a jutsu. It was time to awaken them.

"Now for the endgame." Itachi said without emotion.

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**Next week the last chapter, chapter 65 – "Endgame"**

**The epilogue will be posted the week after, and of course the sequel will follow.**

**Please review**


	65. Chapter 65 Endgame

**Last week Itachi and Madara wiped out the entire Uchiha clan. However, Itachi left his parents and brother alive so he could have one last conversation with them.**

**Thanks for all the reviews and fav's! I enjoy reading them. More are always welcome**

**This is the last chapter. Next week will be the epilogue – and I'll warn you now – it's is very long… about twice as long as this chapter, but I didn't want to split it up.**

**Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto. Pein is still trying to obtain rights though. I guess we should all be lucky they are using ninjutsu instead of lawyers… (bad joke… sorry xD)**

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**Chapter 65 – Endgame**

Itachi watched as Fugaku and Mikoto opened their eyes and took note of their surroundings. Both looked around the room before glancing at the window that was providing the only light. A full moon gazed back at them, cold, white and silent. They heard a sound and saw Itachi standing in front of them, eyes downcast and shadowed; he slowly raised his gaze and stared at them as if he couldn't see anything. Suddenly he revealed his Sharingan and pulled his sword from it's holder on his back.

"What….what have you done Itachi?" Fugaku stumbled over his words still a little dazed from the drug. His brain felt foggy and his limbs were heavy. A clock on a nearby cabinet showed nearly two hours had passed. Slowly, his brain registered alarm as he realized Itachi reeked of blood. Activating his own Sharingan Fugaku saw that the teen had no blood stains on his clothes that could account for the strong smell.

"I killed them all, father. The entire clan." Itachi said flatly.

Mikoto gasped, "You… you couldn't have!"

"You are right, mother, I had Madara help me." Itachi admitted.

"Itachi…" Fugaku whispered, "Everyone?"

"Everyone."

"Why?" It was unimaginable. Impossible.

"To save Konoha and Fire country. I had to do it. You would have plunged the world into another war. Tens of thousands would have died. I… don't like seeing people die. I don't want to see another valley full of corpses." Itachi spoke calmly as he continued to stare into his father's eyes.

Fugaku took hold of Mikoto's hand and she squeezed tightly, attempting to seek comfort in his presence. She was suddenly very afraid of her son. Itachi stepped forward and the moonlight revealed his face. Both Fugaku and Mikoto looked up at him in shock. He had tears streaming from his eyes. They ran down his face and dripped off his chin.

Fugaku bowed his head. "Are you now working alongside Madara?"

"No. I will never do that. I will kill him." Itachi swore.

Fugaku slowly stood up and walked over to the window. Mikoto followed him. The room faced the street and lying on ground were corpses, dropped and broken weapons and lots of blood. He remembered his own father. The man who had killed for pleasure and reveled in the excitement of battle. So many times he had thought Itachi was like that man. So many times he had been told he was wrong and not believed it. But… his father had never shed any tears. Was this proof that his son, his Itachi, was not a sociopath? No. Despite what Itachi was saying… no normal person could have done what he just did. His son was a sociopath, certainly. It had to be. But… why was he crying?

Fugaku's own voice filled with sorrow, "So… do I now have to fight my son?"

Itachi looked into the older man's eyes without blinking.

"Do you understand what you have done?" Fugaku's sorrow quickly turned to rage and he yelled at his son, "We could have taken this village, given the Uchiha a second chance. Equality in the village that viewed us as second rate. It was what we deserved! What we were promised at the beginning!"

Gulping, Itachi wiped his eyes with his sleeve, but the tears wouldn't stop. He whispered, "I understand. But… the sight of blood no longer excites me. I don't want to see it again."

Fugaku calmed down. "But you have no choice. You are lying to yourself, Itachi. Killing the clan is a simpleton's solution. It doesn't solve the underlying problem."

"I know." Itachi whispered again. "But… this clan… they removed all my choices. Made me into something I should never have become. Gave me hope for a future that would never come to pass."

"And the village is going to give you all that?" Fugaku asked.

"No. No one can give that back to me. But… now… other people have a chance, because I prevented a war."

Fugaku sighed and hung his head. Eyes closed he contemplated what Itachi was saying. It was clear that someone else was pulling the strings. Controlling him. Brainwashing him to turn against his clan, his family. That someone had to be Danzou. But it was too late. He realized he should have taken measures against his son weeks, even months earlier. He should have known his son was this unstable and never have allowed him into ANBU. In retrospect, he knew all the signs were there. But he was blinded. He loved his son, but instead of protecting him the way a father should, he threw his precious boy to the wolves. And for some incredibly stupid reason he had expected him to come back without any bites.

"I have failed my clan. Itachi, you know what you must do next." Fugaku walked to the middle of the room and dropped down to his knees. Mikoto saw what he was doing and sat next to him in the same position.

Itachi was a little surprised that Fugaku would give up so easily. He had expected a fight, even welcomed it. He felt his parents deserved, at least, the opportunity to hit him a few times for what he had done.

Itachi frowned, "Why?"

Fugaku was silent for a few seconds. "'Why' is a big question."

"Why give up so easy?" Itachi reworded the question.

"I cannot fight my son. Even when I knew you were passing information to Danzou I could not bring myself to…" He paused, realizing he didn't need to finish.

"You… knew?" Itachi was surprised, but his words came out sorrowful and dejected. He suddenly wished his father had done something to let him know he had found out. But… it was the second reminder that night… that his parents were human. That they had feelings and not just foolish pride.

Itachi was sure he would have to fight his parents; he had even mentally prepared himself to use Tsukuyomi on them. Fugaku also had the Mangekyou Sharingan but he doubted he had been able to practice any of its techniques. Itachi, on the other hand, was able to practice during Akatsuki missions and had become quite adept.

"I… cannot live without my clan. It would be dishonorable. They await me, Itachi. I am the one responsible for your actions. I could have stopped you… They… have a right to blame me for not protecting them." He bowed his head forward slightly in supplication to his son. "They await you as well. As my heir… you… we… have… both failed them. But you must kill Madara first. Then you must die."

Mikoto gasped in shock at her husbands words, but before she could speak a voice was heard down the hall, "Father! Mother!" The footfalls of a child running, then stopping suddenly outside of the room.

Mikoto spoke up, "Sasuke! Don't come in!" She looked up at Itachi, silently pleading, fear written all over her face.

"Don't worry about Sasuke. He will live. He will revive the clan and one day Uchiha will once again walk proudly through the streets of Konoha." Itachi said softly.

"Thank-you, Itachi." Mikoto sighed with relief, "Itachi…we will wait for you…please take care of Sasuke."

Itachi remembered his mother's words, spoken from her hospital bed the day after Sasuke's birth, _" Itachi, thank-you for following mine and everyone else's orders. You saved your brothers life. When you save a persons life, you become responsible for them. He is more than just your brother now. He is your very existence. Please watch over him."_

"What are your plans, then Itachi?" Fugaku asked firmly.

"I…" Itachi paused, wondering if he should reveal his intentions to his parents. However, perhaps they had a right to hear them. "In a few minutes, Sasuke will discover I killed everyone. He… will hate me for it. He will hate me…" He trailed off, as if talking to himself. "I will leave him in Konoha under the supervision of the Third, then join Akatsuki full time. In a few years he will be powerful enough to fight me. At that time, he will kill me. My death… my death will make him a hero in the eyes of the village. They will never know about the coup… only that I… that I…" Itachi found it hard to continue.

Fugaku couldn't believe what he was hearing, "You are the sacrifice to maintain the reputation of the clan. Itachi, that's insane! Do you have any idea what that will do to you? To Sasuke? Dammit Itachi!"

"Itachi," Mikoto's voice wavered and he could see her trembling, "Sasuke… he won't be able to handle this. His personality is completely different from yours. Can't you take him with you? Or send him to… Oh my god! What about Aya and the twins?"

"No. I can't expose him to Akatsuki. It would put him too close to Madara. It's okay. Don't worry. I am leaving him here, but I will keep an eye on him. He will inherit everything, and be safe. I promise. And… Aya and the babies are under Madara's protection. I can't touch them. As long as they stay there, I have to reason to…"

"Then…" Mikoto glanced at Fugaku, who nodded once, "we will trust you."

"Please… don't make this harder than it already is. I don't hate you. I thought I did… but I don't." Itachi pleaded as he moved to stand behind his parents. He could hear Sasuke talking to himself on the other side of the door, trying to convince himself to open it. "I will follow you. It will be a few years... once Sasuke is strong enough to be on his own I will seek out Madara and kill him. Then… I will join you. I know my sworn duty and even though I have… I have spit in the face of those rules, when that day comes I will accept my punishment."

Fugaku and Mikoto nodded once in understanding. Both were devastated that things had turned out this way. A lot of "what ifs" wandered through each of their minds as they wondered if there was a way to have prevented this. A sign that Itachi was planning to kill everyone. Too late, they realized there was. The boy had alienated himself from his family and clan, become introverted, stopped eating and started passing information to the other side. Too late, they realized their mistake.

But… Fugaku also felt disappointment because he had failed his clan. The oath he had sworn to protect them was broken because he had trusted his son too much. He had such hopes for them, dreams of victory, of ruling a village that would prosper under the thumb of the Uchiha. On the other hand, he was pleased that his son understood the gravity of what he had done and had already made plans to revive the clan, protect his young brother from Madara, and die to pay for his crimes. Throughout the bitter disappointment, there was still the pride that came from the knowledge that the genius prodigy was his son. His Itachi.

The bitter taste of failure broke Mikoto's heart as she realized the oath she had made to herself to stand by Itachi and protect him from his father's tight fist had failed. The boy had rebelled in the worst way possible, and she hadn't paid enough attention to the signs. And now Sasuke would be all alone in the world without her. Without his clan. Would he have to live with strangers? Would they be kind to him? She did at least feel comforted with the knowledge that Itachi still planned to kill Madara. That meant he would keep Sasuke away from him. Away from his real father.

Fugaku sighed took Mikoto's hand and whispered the words he had never been able to say before, "I love you Mikoto". The sword slashed down, severing their spinal columns and slicing into their necks. Mikoto fell first, then Fugaku sprawled out on top of her. The blood from the sudden severing of arteries splattered around the fallen bodies, staining the floor.

Itachi looked down at the now-dead bodies of his parents. He swallowed the sob that rose up in his throat and stepped back into the shadows, quickly wiping the moisture off his face in the process. Speaking with them… perhaps it had been a mistake. It had not gone the way he expected. How could a man who had planned to kill so many without a second thought turn out to be so human? People like that were supposed to be monsters. Inhuman beasts devoid of compassion and without hearts.

Yet he had clearly heard his father's last words. Proof of what Madara had told him only minutes earlier.

Taking a deep breath Itachi forced his body to become an emotionless shell. It was important. The next part of his plan would be far crueler than anything his father had ever done. By the time this evening was over, Itachi would give up his humanity and truly become the "monster" his father had fallen short of attaining. It was the sentence he had passed onto himself for the crimes he had committed this night, and those he had yet to commit. In his eyes, he no longer deserved to be called "human".

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Sasuke slowly opened the door and gazed into the dark, quiet room. In front of him, lying in the moonlight were his parents. Shocked and afraid he quickly took in the sight of their lifeless bodies and the blood leaking from their mouths. Standing behind them was a figure, but his face was in shadow.

"Father! Mother!" Sasuke cried out as he finally ran into the room. He looked up at the figure as it moved into the moonlight and turned its head. "Big Brother! Itachi! Father and Mother are… Who would do such a…"

Sasuke stopped talking as a throwing star glanced across his shoulder, and embedded itself in the wall behind him. He looked down at the sleeve of his shirt and saw a tear. Blood quickly started dripping from the cut and he winced in pain.

Itachi closed his eyes in annoyance, "Foolish little brother." He said calmly. "Mangekyou Sharingan!"

Sasuke stepped back once as his conscious mind was plunged deep into the world of Tsukuyomi. A black world outlined in white with a red sky appeared around the boy as he looked around in alarm. In the sky, black clouds moved quickly, much too fast to be "normal". Looking down the street Sasuke saw clansmen running toward him, only to be struck down with a katana. His brother's katana. Blood flowed freely as people Sasuke had known his entire life fell lifeless before him. He screamed out his denial and clutched his head in his hands, trying to force the vision from his consciousness.

The Tsukuyomi lifted seconds after it started and Sasuke dropped down onto the ground, breathing heavily. It was too much. His brother had killed everyone. Itachi had killed their parents. It was more than he could comprehend and he looked up at Itachi, "Why… why did you…"

"To measure my capacity." Itachi said calmly.

Sasuke remembered his brother saying something similar years earlier when confronted by the police about Shisui's death. _"My abilities been repressed."_

"You killed them to measure your capacity?" Sasuke asked incredulously.

Itachi replied, almost as if distracted, "It was important."

Sasuke suddenly jumped up and ran at Itachi. His anger was quick and he didn't think first about what he was going do when he reached him, "What's wrong with you?" He yelled.

Itachi bent forward a foot and his fist connected with Sasuke's stomach, knocking the air out of him. The boy fell onto the ground right in front of his parent's heads. He looked straight into Fugaku's dead eyes and then at the blood that was still dripping from his mouth. They were truly gone. Dead. And the person who killed them was in the room standing over him.

Sudden panic took grip and he sobbed loudly, "I'm afraid!" Continuing to cry out his fear he dashed out of the house at full speed. Reaching the road he continued to run for another block, only to find his escape route cut off by Itachi, who had used a transportation jutsu to get in front of him.

"It's not true! My brother wouldn't do this!" Sasuke continued to sob loudly as he yelled at Itachi.

"I pretended to be the brother you wanted so I could determine your potential. You will be the one to help me confirm my ability. You have felt anger and jealously toward me. You hoped to one day surpass me. I will let you live for that reason. For my sake. Like me, you have the power to one day awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan." Itachi stopped talking at looked at the terrified little boy standing in front of him, "But there is one catch. You have to kill…your closest friend." Itachi was silent for a few seconds as he saw the information sink into Sasuke's consciousness. "Just as I did."

Sasuke jerked his head up in shock. The accusation two years ago came back to him. "That was you? You… killed Shisui?"

"And now I have the eyes." Itachi watched as the tears continued to stream down Sasuke's face. "In the Nakano shrine under the seventh tatami mat from the right is the secret meeting place of the Uchiha. There you will discover the reason for the clan's eye jutsu. The truth is written there. If you open your eyes to that truth you will obtain Mangekyou Sharingan. If that happens… then I was right to let you live. You would become one of three people to have Mangekyou Sharingan. Right now, you are not even worth killing."

Sasuke stepped back in fear as Itachi adjusted his stance. "Baby brother, you're pathetic. If you want to kill me, hate me and run away, live like the coward you are, clinging to life without honor." Itachi activated his Mangekyou Sharingan and stared at his brother, "And someday, when you have the same eyes as I do come before me again."

Feeling faint, Sasuke started to fall forward, but caught himself at the last minute. His eyes burned for a second and his vision blurred. A couple seconds later everything was revealed in sharp focus, much clearer than he had ever seen before. He watched as Itachi started to turn around then stopped and looked at him with a curious expression on his face. A second later the teenager jumped up and away from Sasuke.

"Wait!" Sasuke yelled as he jumped up onto the roof of a nearby building. He grabbed two shuriken that had been stuck into the roof and threw them at Itachi, who was currently in the process of jumping down onto the road on the other side of the building. He wasn't sure why he was chasing his brother. Maybe he wanted to talk, maybe he wanted to attack. All he knew was that he couldn't let him get away.

Itachi looked up as he made contact with the ground and reached back for his sword to block the incoming shuriken. As he pulled out the sword he brushed his arm against his head, knocking off his forehead protector. He swung the sword around and the shuriken bounced off of it. Bending down he picked up the forehead protector and slipped it back on, the sword still in his right hand.

Sasuke was sitting on the ground panting, watching Itachi closely. Anger, sorrow and disappointment were written all over his face. Itachi looked back at his brother and despite his resolve to show no emotion he felt the tears as they fell down his face. Sasuke gripped his wounded shoulder in pain, it was still bleeding. The boy suddenly closed his eyes and fell forward, unconscious.

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Itachi watched his brother for several minutes as he wiped the tears away from his eyes. He felt like he had been crying for hours and his head was starting to hurt. It had been hard, but this was the hardest. Leaving Sasuke like this, knowing that the boy would hate him for the rest of his life. But it had to be this way.

His brother had attained the Sharingan. One tomoe in each eye was clearly displayed in that last attack. At eight years old, he was the same age as himself when he got his Sharingan. "Father would be very proud of you Sasuke. Madara sees you as a tool, Fugaku saw you as a son. That makes Fugaku your father, Sasuke. Never forget that."

Walking slowly through the deserted, corpse strewn streets Itachi was struck by the dead silence that permeated the compound. He couldn't even hear the village on the other side of the walls that fenced in the clan. He looked down at his watch and saw that it was after 10:00pm. It didn't seem like it should be that late already. How long had he been wandering? Why was he wandering? The compound itself was small, only a few city blocks. He walked through it over and over, as if looking for something.

He passed them at one point. It was obvious Madara had killed them, they had gashes through their abdomens and throats. "Shisui… I'm sorry. I should have killed them myself. I know how much you hated him. And now he's killed your parents. I didn't think about it." He knelt down next to Toshiro and Kisa. They were holding hands. He had seen many couples holding hands…

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Resisting the urge to turn back for one last look at Sheeta and his parents, Itachi finally made his way to the Hokage's office. He could see the old man standing on the balcony and staring in the direction of the Uchiha compound. Itachi jumped up on the roof of a nearby building and used it to jump up onto the balcony. He knelt down about ten feet behind the Hokage.

"The smell of blood surrounds you Itachi. I am disappointed. I ordered you to stand down." Sarutobi's voice was filled with sorrow.

"I did not kill them all." Itachi countered softly.

"Who did you leave alive?" Sarutobi was standing with his back to Itachi and continued to stare straight ahead.

"Sasuke. I came here to beg you to let him live. Let him grow up in Konoha and rebuild the clan. I beg you to protect him from Danzou's influence." Itachi bowed his head in supplication, hoping with every fiber of his being that the last step in his plan would fall into place.

Sarutobi shook his head. "At this point, I shouldn't allow it. He will be an emotional wreck after this. Is it really fair to make him grow up like that?"

"Please, Lord Hokage. I cannot raise him myself. Where I go next is not a place for children and asking another village to care for him… they would exploit him just as Danzou would."

Sarutobi sighed at the irony of Itachi's words. He knew where he was going, 'It is not a place for children, huh, but you, Itachi are a child. Only thirteen-years-old. Despite your maturity and responsibilities… you are still a child.'

The Hokage finally spoke, his words were still full of disappointment, "I can't refuse you, Itachi. I will do as you request. I… I'm really sorry. I didn't want you to do this." He was silent for a couple minutes. "I assume you will be returning to Akatsuki?"

Itachi started for a minute and looked up in surprise. Then realized that Jiraiya probably told Sarutobi what was going on. "Yes. I will keep up contact with Lord Jiraiya and pass him information when necessary. I swear to you, that they will not touch this village. They will not get their hands on Naruto."

"Then, good luck Itachi. This is good-bye. We will never see each other again, God willing, for if we do I will have to treat you as an enemy. From this day forward you are an S-class missing nin and a wanted criminal." Sarutobi finally turned around and looked at the teenager. He instantly regretted it when he saw the boys face. The dark circles, bloodshot emotionless eyes, and sorrowful face were almost too much to bear and his voice broke as he spoke again, "Will you… be leaving… the village now?"

Itachi sighed, "No. I will be speaking with Danzou first. I should be out of here in thirty minutes, though. I thank you for protecting Sasuke." He stood up and used a jutsu to disappear. A thin column of swirling smoke was all that remained on the balcony to remind Sarutobi of one of the worst days of his life, and his biggest failure.

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Danzou felt someone's chakra enter his office. He rose from his bed and slipped on a robe. He had retired early after receiving word from the ROOT operative he had monitoring Itachi that the teenager had begun the massacre. He had planned on sleeping until midnight and hadn't expected Itachi to come see him again. It was disturbing and Danzou was instantly on guard.

Sliding open the door the ROOT commander saw Itachi standing in the middle of the dark office. As the teen slowly turned around and looked at him, Danzou stepped backward two steps at the shear malevolence contained in the boy's eyes and the dark chakra that spread out from his body in waves. He had never felt anything so powerfully evil in his entire life.

"Itachi! What is the meaning of this! You were _ordered_ to leave the village _immediately_ upon finishing your mission." Danzou said angrily, trying desperately to regain his composure.

"I am here to give you a warning." Itachi said firmly. He watched as Danzou stood still, glaring at him. The old man's lips were pursed and his one good eye squinted distrustfully.

Itachi continued speaking, "I have left Sasuke alive. Sarutobi has accepted custody of him. Should I hear that you have so much as come with ten feet of him, no less spoken to or harmed him I will guarantee you will regret it."

"I am prepared to die, Itachi. It is my profession. You cannot threaten me." Danzou replied bitterly.

"I know that. And my threat is not for your person, but to Konoha. Should my little brother be harmed in any way whatsoever, I will pass as many secrets to the enemy shinobi nations as possible. Konoha will fall to them in war and it will be your fault." Itachi's strong voice seemed to echo in Danzou's head as the gravity of the situation finally descended on him.

"Acknowledged." Danzou's voice was filled with bitter resentment as he acquiesced to Itachi's blackmail. He realized he had no choice. The teenager knew enough secrets about Konoha security to allow Cloud, Stone, or any other nation free reign of the city. With Itachi at the helm, Konoha would fall in a matter of hours. "Now leave. And never return."

Itachi gave him one last look and disappeared. Danzou dropped down to the floor and sat, breathing deeply to calm himself. "Why did he leave me alive? To protect Sasuke from the other ANBU? But they don't care… I'm the one who wanted the clan gone. Itachi, what are you up to?" He stood up and walked over to his desk and picked up a transmitter and spoke angrily, "Operation cancelled. Return to base."

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Itachi walked out the front gates of Konoha for what he believed would be the last time. Memories tugged at him as everything he saw reminded him of the past. He closed his eyes to stop them and nearly tripped over a rock in the road. Laughter could be heard coming from behind him and he turned around quickly, pulling a kunai as he activated his Sharingan. His eyes opened wide when he saw who was standing in front of him.

"Better watch where you're going kid." The little boy said, then disappeared. Itachi shook his head. Hallucinations were another symptom of lack of sleep, and since there were no such things as ghosts… And so… _that was not_ _Shisui_. Besides, the hallucination was seven or eight and Shisui was older than that when he died. Didn't ghosts take on the age of the person when they died?

He remembered his dreams, his nightmares. He remembered in them he was walking down the road in the Uchiha compound with a bloody sword and asking why there were no ghosts. If he saw no ghosts in his dream, how could he see them in reality? Wasn't reality just a mirror of ones dreams? Or was it the other way around?

Lack of sleep and food, stress and grief suddenly descended on Itachi as he stumbled down the road, occasionally tripping. He kept seeing the ghostly child. Sometimes it would be as young as six and other times thirteen. Was it a hallucination, or was Shisui following him? It spoke to him in a playful voice that reminded him of his long dead cousin.

"There's a puddle up there! Don't fall in!"

"You should really get more sleep, kid."

"You keep tripping you're going twist your ankle."

"When are we going to play together again?"

Finally Itachi couldn't keep his eyes open anymore and he collapsed face down in the road.

He felt a hand gently caressing his cheek and right before he lost consciousness the ghost spoke to him one last time, "I am your eyes, little brother. I go where you go. I will wait for you."

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**Next week: the Epilogue**

**I hope you enjoyed it (you know, it feels kind of weird to ask someone to enjoy a tragedy)… next week is the Epilogue **

**Please review! **

**Explanation:**

**So… someone will probably ask why Itachi and Fugaku didn't fight. The reason comes from the fact that in the Manga Fugaku and Mikoto are shown kneeling then being struck down. It was an execution instead of a fight. Also, when Sasuke arrives at the door to the room someone calls out for him to not come in. The voice is never identified, but I figure it was either Mikoto or Fugaku. This means they were still alive at this point, which means they were the last to die. **

**In old Japan (and even Europe) to survive when your regiment, clan or companions had all died was seen as dishonorable. The survivor would then commit suicide or swear an oath of vengeance and die fighting. At this point Fugaku had two things to consider: he had failed to protect his clan, and his son was the one who had killed them. His sworn oath was to die if he failed his clan, and that was exactly what he wanted to do at this point. He saw it as his punishment, but more than that, his duty. He also asked Itachi to die as well, since he had also failed the clan and was pleased that his son accepted this. Living when his clan was dead was not something Fugaku could do.**

**Of course, Itachi could have used Tsukuyomi, but I tend think it would have been out of character for him to torture his parents. Really, this is another of those "we need more info from the manga" situations, so I picked "execution" instead of "Tsukuyomi".**


	66. Epilogue

**Thanks for reading, it means a lot to me that you could stick through such a long story. I learned a lot while writing it, and I was impressed with the great reviews I got. They were helpful and I enjoyed reading them.**

**The AU sequel will begin next week. It will be more of a challenge to write, since there will be no manga to fall back on for plot analysis. But, I hope the plot I did work out pans together and entertains you. **

**Disclaimer: Naruto is owned by ****Masashi Kishimoto**

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**xx Prologue xx**

**Itachi Uchiha stepped out of the cave and into a rainstorm. The 21 year old member of the infamous terrorist organization Akatsuki closed his eyes and lifted his head to the sky so he could feel the rain falling on his face. It pooled around his eyes and cheeks, forming rivulets that ran down his head onto his neck. Kisame Hoshigaki, Itachi's partner-in-crime, remarked that he looked like he was crying and reminded him that he would become ill if he got too wet.**

**Random memories threaded through Itachi's head until they finally focused on certain events; his indoctrination into the clan at four, his graduation from the Academy at eight, the Chuunin exam, his entrance into ANBU, his recruitment into Akatsuki. He remembered the valley of corpses – dead for as far as the eye could see. His friends… they had died over the years. Some in battle, some by his hand. His mother and father entered his thoughts then. He thought he had hated them at one point in his life, but now the feeling was regret. Not that he had killed them, but at the desperation that had driven his clan to the edge and the same desperation and that had driven him to stop them.**

**The last memory to wind its way though the young man's mind was of a boy, five years his junior. Sasuke. His little brother was out there, hunting him. And now it was time to allow the hunter catch his prey.**

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**xx Epilogue xx**

"It's a shame about your little brother. Looks like you're all that left of the Uchiha clan." Kisame smirked as he stared at his partners back.

Itachi turned his head and looked back over his shoulder, "No. He's not dead yet. Besides…"

"Huh?" Kisame creased his brow in confusion.

"The storm has passed." The rain let up as the clouds parted, revealing a bright sun. The wet earth reflected the rays, making the colors brighter and turning the puddles into murky mirrors. However, Itachi saw none of that. The thirteen-year-old teenager who had killed his clan and walked away from Konoha eight years ago was gone. In his place stood a twenty-one-year-old man who was nearly blind. The details of the world were forever gone, stolen by the Mangekyou Sharingan he had taken such pains to cultivate. He could see well enough to get by if he used his regular Sharingan, and of course he had Kisame. The shark man would never go so far as to hold his hand, but he would point out certain obstacles like cliffs or ditches. Itachi had also learned that if he walked beside Kisame people would get out of the tall man's way, thus lessening his chances of tripping over small children and animals. It was almost like have a seeing-eye shark instead of a dog, he had joked to himself at one point. Of course, he didn't say it out loud. Kisame would have hit him over the head with his sword if he did.

Itachi pulled out a small water-proof canister from an inside pocket and tipped five pills into his palm. He swallowed them along with a long drink from his canteen. His eyes were not the only part of his body to have suffered over the last few years. The disease he had carried dormant for so long as a child had finally manifested in full force in his mid-teens. Without a doctor knowledgeable in Kekkai Genkai related illnesses to treat him, his lungs were now in very poor shape and his heart had weakened. Pneumonia, bronchitis and colds were something he had learned to live with. Along with coughing spells that, lately, frequently resulted in a mouth full of blood.

The biggest annoyance, though, as far as Itachi was concerned, was his loss of stamina. His knowledge and use of jutsu, Genjutsu, Taijutsu, Seals, and everything else was phenomenal. He had put years of study and practice into his Ninja arts. But because his stamina was so low he was unable to go all out. If a fight was going to last more than a few minutes, Itachi was now forced to sit it out and let Kisame take care of things. He felt like a weak little Genin at times like those.

Kisame didn't seem to mind. In fact, he appreciated the fact that Itachi was up front with him and rarely complained. It was something Itachi was grateful for, but it also made him suspicious. The tall man would cheerfully say, "Don't worry about it, I'll handle things". But to Itachi, it was like a bribe, like he was saying, "Don't question me and I'll watch over you."

He knew Kisame was hiding something. The man would take occasional trips on his own, calling it "personal business". Itachi never questioned him although he had found out certain interesting facts about his partners past and his connections to Madara. It made him curious about why the elder Uchiha continued to hide his identity from him. The two had worked closely together in Mist before Kisame had left.

"Kisame, we're heading for the Uchiha Hideout." Itachi finally said.

"There again, huh? You sure spend a lot of time there. Not that I'm complaining. Your ancestors sure built a comfortable fortress." Kisame laughed.

"We aren't going there to relax." It was finally time to end what he had started all those years ago.

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Itachi and Kisame made their way north and within a couple hours were outside of the massive Hideout. Round and pyramidal in shape it rose out of the ground like a mountain, but it also extended straight down into the ground. It could easily house several thousand people, in fact before the Uchiha had moved to Konoha it had been their home for several hundred years. Clan legend had even speculated that it predated the emperors and was an original fortress from an era long past. After all, why would their ancestors have built such a large fortress when the number of people in the clan had always been under a thousand? They must have taken it from someone else, or perhaps it had been abandoned.

"Kisame, wait here." Itachi stopped in front of the Hideout near some abandoned buildings. "When Sasuke comes, let only him through."

"Sasuke is coming here?" Kisame asked hesitantly. This did not sound like good news.

"Yeah." Itachi closed his eyes and smiled, tilting his head to the ground.

"Can you fight him?" Kisame asked, concerned.

"Yeah." Itachi turned around to walk away. 'This is where we part ways, Kisame.' He said silently.

Kisame frowned, "Huh. So this is the way you want it?"

Itachi was a little taken aback by the statement and stopped walking. He nodded. He should have known Kisame would read between the lines. The man was very perceptive.

"Then I'll make sure only Sasuke gets through." Kisame watched as Itachi walked away, his slow measured steps taking him into the overgrown shrubs that hid the entrance. He shook his head in partial denial of what was about to happen. He knew Itachi's secret; why he killed the clan. But the reason he had left Sasuke alive always eluded him. Now he finally understood the truth.

"You are a powerful and merciless ninja Itachi, yet… you never quite lost that noble streak. But I guess it beats dying of pneumonia." Kisame found a comfortable spot and lay down to watch the clouds. "Still. I will miss you." He closed his eyes as his mood turned dark. He had a passing thought to catch up to the young man and try to talk him out of fighting his brother. It would be pointless, though. Itachi could still overpower him if he wanted to, and this confrontation was obviously something the man was taking great pains to make happen.

He remembered, thirteen years ago his first impression of the eight-year-old Itachi was that he was a weak, skinny little kid. He couldn't have been more wrong.

"_Ha ha ha ha! Look what I caught Zabuza. Should we filet it or have some sushi?" Itachi was being held up by the back of his coat, having been pulled out of the river by the same man who had pushed him in a minute earlier. He looked at the tall man curiously. He had blue skin, pointy teeth and perfectly round white eyes with a single small black pupil._

_The teenager he called "Zabuza" walked over and looked up at Itachi. "Nah. Too small. Throw it back, Kisame."_

"_Are you going to put me down?" Itachi asked angrily._

"_I don't know. Leaf grows some pretty small ninja. I don't think I would be very responsible if I let a little kid wander around alone." Kisame sounded both thoughtful and amused. The small boy couldn't be more than six or seven-years-old, yet he was wearing a leaf headband. To have graduated so young must mean he had incredible potential. However, the way he talked and the lack of fear was more indicative of an older child. Perhaps he was just very small for his age._

"_I'd think twice about that if I were you." Aki walked up and leaned against a tree. "That boy's not all home, if you know what I mean."_

_Kisame gave a big grin as Itachi activated his Sharingan. "Uchiha, huh? I've heard about that clan. Well, well, well, so the little fish turns out to be a piranha." He set Itachi back down on the ground._

Kisame still remembered finding the boy unconscious on the road outside of Konoha hours after the massacre. He hadn't known what had happened back then; only that he was told by Pein that Itachi was leaving his village permanently and to meet him there. He had taken him to a deserted cabin in Waterfall. Itachi had moped around for about a month, recovering his strength and sleeping a lot. It was during this time that Kisame had found out what had happened from some gossiping men in a small town a few miles from the cabin. Returning to his partner that night he had watched as the boy sat alone next to a window staring at nothing.

"_I heard what you did." Kisame said quietly._

_Itachi turned his head and looked at the tall man for a minute before sighing in annoyance and turning his gaze back to the window._

"_You know I won't ask why you did it. The reason doesn't matter." Kisame sat down on the bed next to Itachi. "But I will only give you two more weeks to recover before I inform Leader that you are unfit for duty." He pulled a bag out of his pocket and set it in front of the boy._

_Itachi nodded once to show he was listening, then opened the bag and saw several candy bars. He smiled for the first time in almost three weeks, "Thanks Kisame."_

"I joined Akatsuki to change things." Kisame said quietly, "But I wonder… I wonder… is that really even possible?"

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Itachi entered the Hideout a few minutes later and made his way to the throne room. The long walk through the cold stone building brought back many unwanted memories. His life as a young child was not something he wished to remember. Now, after so many years, it seemed like it was someone else's life and not his own. His life now consisted of a black and red cloak, death, and a guilt so overwhelming that on several occasions he had considered giving up and killing himself. However, no matter how long he held a blade to his throat he couldn't bring himself to rob his little brother of revenge. In the end, that was all he had to live for: Sasuke.

Sitting on the throne he smiled as he remembered the taboo his clan had once placed on such an act. Drawing his legs up so that he was sitting cross-legged, Itachi concentrated. Earlier he had created two clones and sent them in two different directions. He was looking for two people and, as he concentrated, he sensed that one of those people was near one of the clones already.

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The Itachi-clone peaked out from behind a tree at the blond-haired teenager hiding a few feet in front of him. He could sense the boys fear and smiled. Instead of rushing at him like he did a few months earlier he was now being careful. He had to admit, he was pleased with this new behavior. However, hiding wasn't going to accomplish what he had come here to do.

Itachi stepped out from behind the tree and walked into a small clearing. His Sharingan looked at the tree Naruto was hiding behind. "Naruto Uzumaki, show yourself."

Itachi smirked, "I know you're alone, why don't you flee?"

"Humph. "I can be one or a thousand! Besides, I would never run! If I capture you, I can see Sasuke!" Naruto stood up straight and faced Itachi with a determined look on his face.

"Why are you so concerned with my brother? After all, he's a missing nin." Itachi spoke calmly and gazed steadily into Naruto's eyes.

Naruto returned his gaze and spoke with a determination that left no room for argument, "Because I think of him as more of a brother than you ever did!"

Itachi's lips moved slightly in a small smile at the teen's words, but he didn't get much time to reflect on them when Naruto suddenly cried out and started running across the clearing. He quickly cast a Genjutsu, easily catching Naruto in a large number of crows.

"You are in my illusion. I'll ask once more. I just want to talk to you." The lower half of Itachi's body turned into crows as he spoke, eliciting a cry of surprise from Naruto. "You want to bring Sasuke back, right? But… what if he doesn't want to go?"

"I'll do whatever I have to, to bring him back!" Naruto yelled; the sincerity of his statement was loud and clear.

"By force if necessary? If all goes well, and he comes quietly, that one thing. But what if it's the opposite?" Itachi asked as the crows continued to circle around the pair.

Naruto was getting nervous and began to sweat. "What do you mean?" His voice was still loud, but had dropped down an octave.

Itachi continued to speak, "You said you though of Sasuke as a brother. Well, I'm asking, what would you do if Sasuke attacked Konoha?"

"What? Why would he… He'd never to that!" Naruto yelled.

"Sasuke is still pure. He could very easily be colored by anything. If that happened, would you be able to stop him?" Itachi paused for a moment, "Even if it meant killing him? Could you weigh Sasuke's life against Konoha?"

Itachi's words left Naruto dumbstruck and he reacted with anger, "I'd protect Konoha! And find a way to stop Sasuke without killing him!"

"Humph. You're such a child. You talk of nothing but pipe dreams… There are times when a ninja must make painful choices."

Naruto remembered having a similar conversation with Jiraiya, after Sasuke had first left to join Orochimaru. The sage had told him the same thing, using almost the same words. But that wasn't the way Naruto worked.

"Someone said the same thing to me before. But there's no choice. I won't go back on my word. That's what being a ninja means to me." Naruto's face was set in a determined stare as he met Itachi's gaze unflinchingly. He then opened his eyes wide with shock when Itachi smiled at him and launched a crow straight down his throat. He dropped down to the ground in pain, feeling like he had just swallowed a too-big piece of sushi, whole.

"I've given you some of my power." Itachi continued in his annoyingly calm voice, "I hope… the day never comes when you have to use it."

"Wh…what do you mean?" Naruto was finally able to catch his breath and looked back up at Itachi, who was still smiling. "You're after me, I know you are. Why not take me now?"

"I have to leave. I have something more important to do." Itachi dispelled the Genjutsu and disappeared, leaving a very confused Naruto behind. It didn't matter though. When the time was right, understanding would come to him. Itachi felt no need to explain anything further.

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Back in the throne room Itachi breathed a sigh of relief. The first of his fail-safes was now in place.

"Naruto…" Itachi said quietly, "the 'Sasuke' you know is a person I created. When I am gone, that person must, by definition, also leave. It is your job to mold a new 'Sasuke', to turn him back into the person he was supposed to be. You, Kakashi and Sakura."

However, there would be hurdles to cross, and first hurdle would no doubt show himself minutes after the fight ended.

"Madara, I will not allow you to harm my brother."

Itachi knew that he had grown so much in power that his former teacher was now afraid of him. If the two of them were to fight, neither would come out of it unscathed. But as powerful as Itachi was, his failing health made the chances that he could actually kill the man about fifty-fifty. He could definitely immobilize him, perhaps even permanently disable him. But that would not be enough. Even disabled, there was a chance he could return to full strength in a few years. The risk was too great. The only solution was to kill him dead. And the only person who could do that now was Sasuke.

The throne room was in shambles. As a child he remembered it had been well taken care of. The floor was swept, cracks were mended, and broken lights replaced. Now… chunks of the wall had fallen to litter the floor with rocks and dust, and very few of the lights still worked. Itachi actually liked it better this way. The massive structure was finally showing its age. Perhaps it was a sign that soon Madara himself would show his age and crumble to bits.

Drawing his legs up to his chest, Itachi leaned his forehead on his knees. He could feel the congestion building up in his lungs again. It felt like he was drowning, and the burning sensation that spread from his chest into his throat was painful. The healer Kisame had located for him worked in a clinic that catered to missing nins. A hospital that was hidden and known to only a few it had all the latest technology and many skilled healers and surgeons, but because of the unique physiologies indicative to kekkai Genkai, his illness could only be treated superficially. They did not have the resources to cure it, or even put it in remission.

The healer's apprentice entered his thoughts. A woman, one year older than him, she had left her village after her parents had been killed on a mission. She had suspected her village had killed them, although Itachi never got any more of the story than that. Still it didn't matter. Missing nin didn't ask personal questions and volunteered very little in the way of personal information.

"Miyo." Itachi said her name quietly and smiled as he swallowed two more pills. Big brown eyes, short black hair, soft ivory skin and a body even a blind man could see was amazing. He had become attached to her after several visits and eventually…

"_I hope you two were doing more than sleeping or finding you like this would be a complete waste of time." Kisame smirked as he looked down at the couple who were, until thirty seconds ago, sound asleep in Itachi's hospital bed._

"_Oh, don't worry, we did a lot more than sleep." Miyo gave a short laugh. "Why do you think we're so tired?"_

_Kisame winked at his partner who was blushing. He grabbed a small bag off the table, "I just came by to pick this up. Oh… and Itachi… sex with your nurse…" He gave the teen a thumbs-up and smiled broadly, "That's my boy!"_

"Best birthday present ever…" Itachi said to himself, smirking. It had been his seventeenth and things just kind of developed from there. He had to admit, though, that he didn't love her, and he knew he wasn't the only man she was sleeping with. That was fine, though, because it was Sheeta he loved. No one had ever replaced her. And perhaps… in a few hours…

"Sheeta, before I go to hell, I would like to see you one last time."

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The second Itachi clone waited patiently inside a cave once used as a shrine. Dark and humid, the silence was broken only by the sound of dripping water. Soon, quiet footsteps approached and a teenage boy walked carefully into view. A few inches shorter than Itachi, the teen wore a long dark cloak and his forehead was bandaged. It was definitely Sasuke.

Itachi smiled, "You're here."

"Who are you?" Sasuke looked straight ahead, but the person was nothing more than a shadow in the empty cavern.

Itachi stepped forward and his face caught the meager light spilling in from the opening. Sharingan activated, his intent gaze met the eyes of his brother. "It's me Sasuke."

Sasuke scowled, half in shock. Even though he wanted to find his brother, actually seeing him was still a surprise. Itachi just stood in front of him, emotionless and immobile. A crow sat on his left shoulder, looking around.

"Have you gotten taller?" Itachi remarked offhand.

Sasuke snorted, "You haven't changed. Including those eyes."

"You're not…going to run at me screaming and shouting like last time are you?" Itachi teased.

"Humph." Sasuke quickly regained his composure. "You don't know the first thing about me." He quickly ran behind his older brother and activated his Raikiri. A spear consisting of lightening based chakra shot forward and pierced Itachi through the back. Sasuke quickly lifted the spear up off the ground as the end plunged into the roof of the cave. The crow squawked as it flew off of the man's shoulder and fluttered about in a panic.

Sasuke turned his head from the sight and looked at his hand. "You don't know… how much hatred I have bottled up in my heart or how strong that hate has made me. You don't know a single thing about me." He splayed his fingers and the bit of the chakra spear inside Itachi's torso formed eight tendrils that pierced through at several angles. He released the chakra and Itachi fell to the ground, landing on his back.

"You have become strong." Itachi's voice didn't register any of the pain indicative to being speared. Sasuke, who had been walking forward, toward the prostrate man stopped in surprise and stared. A few seconds later Itachi's body disappeared, turning into about fifty crows that flew in a circle around the teen. He had known it was a clone that stood before him, but his brother's dramatic flair when he dispelled it was unexpected.

Itachi's voice echoed throughout the cavern, "come alone to the Uchiha Hideout. We can settle things there."

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Kisame sat up from where he was reclining against a tree and smirked. "So, he really did come." Standing up he jumped to the top of a power pole and rested Samehada on his shoulder.

Sasuke and his three companions jumped up onto the roof of a house near where Kisame was perched. Looking up, they waited a minute before the tall man spoke, "Sasuke, if you would, please continue on by yourself. Itachi would prefer the rest of us remain here." He was smiling, but his voice was formal, as if announcing an honored guest at a dinner party.

"No problem." Sasuke replied, "I formed this team for the sole purpose of preventing interference when I found him. This works out perfectly."

Karin, a red-headed teen with glasses, shook her head in indignation, "That's insane! We should beat this guy into the ground and fight Itachi together!"

Kisame sneered, "I'm seriously not in the mood for another fight. But if all of you try to continue on I won't go easy on you."

"Karin, don't even think about it. You all wait here. This is _my_ revenge." Sasuke's even voice only served to annoy Karin, and the man standing behind her, Juugo. Neither liked the idea of their friend fighting alone.

However, as soon as Sasuke was out of sight, the third member of the team smiled. "Kisame Hoshigaki and his sword Samehada."

Kisame frowned in confusion. He was sure he hadn't ever seen that white-haired kid with the chiseled teeth before.

"Do you remember me? I'm Mangetsu Houzuki's younger brother. Suigetsu Houzuki." Suigetsu smiled broadly as he spoke.

"Oh! Are you? I didn't even recognize you, you've grown so much." He smirked, pleased at the revelation. Kisame hadn't seen the boy since he was about six or seven years old. He was a little hellion though, able to kill without a second thought the boy was considered by some to be the second coming of Zabuza Momochi.

Suigetsu reached behind him and pulled out the sword he had rescued from Zabuza's grave. A long, wide blade designed for decapitation it had a hole big enough to fit a head through near the tip and a notch for a neck near the handle. "While we're stuck here, what about killing some time? Let's have some fun, Kisame."

"Well, well, well. Good to see you haven't lost your mischievous streak. Ha! I'll gladly shave a few layers off of you!" Kisame gave a short laugh and raised Samehada so it was in front of him.

"Suigetsu, you're disobeying Sasuke's orders. Are you sure that's a good idea?" Juugo said, worried. The young man was a little taller than Kisame, but had a kind face and, unless provoked by inner demons he could not control, a calm disposition.

Karin, who was now looking forward to seeing Suigetsu get "shaved", looked back over her shoulder and silently cursed at Juugo, 'Show some backbone you wimp!'

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Itachi was reclining on the throne. His ankles were crossed and his left arm was pulled across his torso instead of in the sleeve and resting on the still buttoned seam of his cloak. His right hand was resting over his wrist. He was the picture of relaxation.

Moving his eyes upward he sensed the approach of one of his "comrades". Zetsu, the spy. He recorded everything that went on in the organization. His arrival was expected, but Itachi refused to acknowledge his presence. Zetsu liked to think he could sneak around, unnoticed. Unfortunately for him, Itachi had long ago learned how to tell when he was near. It mattered little, though. His presence had already been accounted for in his plans. He could safely ignore the man for the rest of the fight. And, well, if he was lucky maybe Zetsu would get caught in the cross-fire and die.

The soft sound of footsteps approached the open door and a sixteen-year-old boy walked hesitantly into the room. Sasuke stopped at the entrance and stared at his brother. Now that he was here, and the fight was beginning, he had to remind himself not to get too excited or rush things.

Itachi's calm voice broke the silence, "What do you see… with your Sharingan?"

"What do I see…" Sasuke spoke contemplatively, as if considering the question with deep intent. He walked forward and finally stopped at the bottom of the stairs that lead up to the throne. "With the power I have gained I see only one thing. I see you _dead_."

Itachi sighed and rested the back of his head against the throne. "You see me… 'dead'?" He smiled and returned his gaze to his little brother. "Well then…" Using a transportation jutsu Itachi disappeared from the throne and re-appeared behind Sasuke, with his back turned to him. "Let's see just how good your eyesight is then."

Sasuke was shocked by the sudden movement and his brothers close proximity, mere inches behind him. He turned around quickly, pulling his sword, however Itachi blocked him and, grabbing the back of his collar, threw him across the room. Sasuke retaliated by activating a Chidori and launching himself back at Itachi. About ten feet from his brother he dropped down to his knees and forced the jutsu into the ground. It crackled as it arced through the seams of the rock. Itachi jumped at the last minute, feeling blood drip off his right cheek. Sasuke jumped up at the same time and pushed his Kusanegi sword into Itachi's chest. The man fell onto his back with Sasuke landing on top of him.

"You have gotten stronger." Itachi said calmly. A small amount of blood was now dripping out of both sides of his mouth.

"This is end Itachi, but before I kill you, one last question." Sasuke creased his brows in concentration as he held his brothers gaze. Itachi responded by lifted one trembling hand, bring his index and middle finger closer to Sasuke he suddenly changed direction and pointed to the throne.

Changing his gaze Sasuke saw Itachi was still sitting calmly on the throne. He looked back down at the man beneath him and watched as it turned into crows. Just like in the cave.

"The end is a long ways off, little brother, but I'm willing to listen. What do you want to know?" Itachi's calm voice was infuriating and Sasuke found himself loosing his temper.

"Have you gone deaf?" he yelled. Sasuke used a jutsu to appear behind the throne and thrust his kusanagi through the back and into Itachi's torso. The end of the blade dripped with blood as it pierced through his chest causing Itachi to register a look of surprise. Blood was forced up through his throat and mouth, escaping over his lips to drip off his chin. Staring straight ahead he saw his brother still standing at the bottom of the stairs. However, he realized it was a clone as the figure of the teenager turned into multiple snakes that slithered off and disappeared.

Sasuke rested his forehead on the back of the throne and he tightened his grip on the hilt. Anger, hatred and impatience entered his voice as he continued, "I said 'this is the end' you asshole! But before I kill you I have one last question."

Closing his eyes for a moment, Sasuke remembered, all those years ago, the words of his elder brother the night of the massacre.

"_I pretended to be the brother you wanted so I could determine your potential. You will be the one to help me confirm my ability. You have felt anger and jealously toward me. You hoped to one day surpass me. I will let you live for that reason. For my sake. Like me, you have the power to one day awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan." Itachi stopped talking at looked at the terrified little boy standing in front of him, "But there is one catch. You have to kill…your closest friend." Itachi was silent for a few seconds as he saw the information sink into Sasuke's consciousness. "Just as I did."_

_Sasuke jerked his head up in shock. The accusation two years ago came back to him. "That was you? You… killed Shisui?"_

"_And now I have the eyes." Itachi watched as the tears continued to stream down Sasuke's face. "In the Nakano shrine under the seventh tatami mat from the right is the secret meeting place of the Uchiha. There you will discover the reason for the clan's eye jutsu. The truth is written there. If you open your eyes to that truth you will obtain Mangekyou Sharingan. If that happens… then I was right to let you live. You would become one of three people to have Mangekyou Sharingan. Right now, you are not even worth killing."_

_Sasuke stepped back in fear as Itachi adjusted his stance. "Baby brother, you're pathetic. If you want to kill me, hate me and run away, live like the coward you are, clinging to life without honor." Itachi activated his Mangekyou Sharingan and stared at his brother, "And someday, when you have the same eyes as I do come before me again."_

Sasuke ground his teeth together and spoke angrily, "Now answer! Unless you want to know what real pain is!"

Itachi's voice was still calm, "You avoided striking a fatal blow on purpose."

"That night..." Sasuke began, "you said there was a third person. I realized… it could only mean there was one other person you didn't kill. That had to mean that he helped you wipe out the rest of the clan. Even you couldn't have killed the entire military police force on your own."

Itachi smirked, "So, you've figured it out."

Sasuke growled, "_Who is he_?" He waited for a couple minutes but no answer seemed to be forthcoming, "Who is the third survivor? The other Sharingan user you told me about?"

Itachi sighed audibly and leaned back against the throne for a few seconds before turning his head to gaze in the direction of his brother, who was still crouching on the floor behind him. "Why do you want to know about _him_?"

"Because after I kill you, he's next. That's why."

Snorting, Itachi smirked, "_You_? Kill _him_? Madara Uchiha? One of Konoha's founding fathers and the first to ever awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan?"

_It was several months earlier and Sasuke stood next to Naruto in what appeared to be a deserted building. A huge orangeish brown chakra beast was in front of them, its snout resting on the ground at eye level with the two teens. Large teeth, white and fearsome were bared as Sasuke reached forward, placing his hand on the beasts nose. It growled and spoke in an unbelievably malevolent voice, "Those eyes… and a chakra even more sinister than my own. Just like Madara Uchiha."_

Sasuke collected himself and yelled back at his brother, "Founding father? Impossible! If that was true he'd be long dead by now! Quit messing with me!"

"Madara is very much alive, I assure you. But I can't force you to believe me. That's up to you."

"I've had enough of this bullshit!" Sasuke yelled.

Itachi continued to speak, "People live their lives bound by what they accept as correct and true, that is what they define as 'reality'. But what does it mean to be 'correct' or 'true'? Merely vague concepts. Their 'reality' may be nothing more than a mirage. Can we consider them to be living in their own world, shaped by their own beliefs?"

Sasuke clenched his teeth again and hissed, "What are you getting at now?"

"Humph. Like the way you decided that Madara must be dead. Like the way you believed I was a kind and caring brother."

Memories of Itachi playing and talking to him, happy times that he had treasured in his younger years, sifted to the forefront of Sasuke's consciousness. But all too soon they were replaced by the dead bodies of his parents and the cold, merciless gaze Itachi gave him that night when he admitted to the murders.

His voice dropped and he spoke, barely above a whisper, "I was so young… my only explanation was that it was a horrible nightmare. I wanted to believe it wasn't real, that I was trapped in some evil Genjutsu." He paused a few seconds then yelled desperately at the top of his lungs, "_But it did happen. That was reality_!"

Sasuke suddenly reached out with his free hand and sent a Raikiri spear directly behind him. He had realized that the Itachi he had speared didn't exist. He was inside of a Genjutsu cast by his brother. The spear plunged through a second "Itachi" that sat on a second throne.

"My eyes are wide open now! My Sharingan sees right through your Genjutsu." Sasuke continued to yell.

"Ha! How familiar, you are still getting angry and yelling threats at me. Still, I suppose they're not just words now. But I can't help but notice, you still don't have the same eyes as me, Sasuke."

"It won't make a difference." Sasuke said confidently.

"Humph." Itachi stood up from the throne. "The Mangekyou Sharingan has a rather unique characteristic. From the day you awaken it, your eyes begin a slow descent into darkness. The more you use them, the quicker the degeneration."

"And that means?" Sasuke wondered if Itachi was trying to side-track him by changing the subject.

"The Mangekyou will eventually loose its light."

"Blindness? So that's the price for controlling the nine-tailed fox?" Sasuke wondered if Itachi was blind. "Who is Madara?" Sasuke returned to the original subject.

Itachi's Sharingan reformed into their Mangekyou version, "A man whose eyes tamed the nine-tails and controlled it like a pet. My accomplice and… my teacher. The only man in history to learn the Sharingan's final secret. He is an invincible immortal."

"Final secret?" Sasuke echoed in disbelief.

"There's more to the Sharingan than controlling the Kyuubi."

"What is it?"

Itachi looked closely at his brother, but detail was something he could no longer see. The blurred outline almost blended in with the background and even distinguishing colors had become difficult. At the best of times, Itachi could see a few bright shades, but right now, in the dingy interior of the Uchiha Hideout, all he could see was shades of gray.

"Well?" Sasuke prompted again.

"It is our clan's history, from a long time ago. A story about Madara and his brother Izuna. His younger brother. They both were equals in all things and constantly competed to be number one. Both awakened their Sharingan and were considered geniuses. Before long they had also achieved the power of the Mangekyou Sharingan. No one else had ever done that. It was easy for them to take control of the clan, with Madara as their leader.

"Not too long after Madara noticed a frightening abnormality in himself. He became blind. He tried everything to free himself from the darkness, but of course his efforts were in vain. He fell into despair. Finally, possessed by the Mangekyou and grasping for a new source of light he plucked both eyes from his younger brother's head. Light returned to Madara's world, dispelling the darkness forever.

"It was a permanent Mangekyou Sharingan. By changing hosts, the younger brother's eyes found an inextinguishable light. But… Madara soon found another benefit… a completely new eye technique. It rendered him unstoppable and the Uchiha clan took control of every shinobi clan they encountered. He was praised as the strongest shinobi in the world.

"An alliance with the Senju clan of the forest was the beginning of Konoha. But Madara and the Senju leader, who became the first Hokage, argued over village policies. He lost the battle, but he remains alive, along with his power. He formed the Akatsuki and hid himself in its shadow.

"Madara was behind the nine-tails attack sixteen years ago. Sadly, he was stopped again, this time by the fourth Hokage. Today, Madara is nothing more than a pathetic shell of his former self. He's no longer worthy of being called the greatest Uchiha. The only person who can surpass him, surpass the invincible Madara and achieve immortality is me."

Itachi raised his hands, palm up, and smiled broadly, "And now! The time to take my prize and gain greater power than him has finally arrived!" He opened his eyes wide and yelled in glee, "_You Sasuke, you will become my new light_!"

Sasuke was horrified and sucked in his breath as he took a step back.

Itachi continued, his smile now a grimace on an insane face, "You were my spare! For decades the Uchiha killed their friends to obtain the Mangekyou Sharingan and their siblings to make its power permanent! Our clan was forever tainted because they couldn't stop flaunting their power! Your fate has been drenched in blood since the day you were born an Uchiha! Face me now, my little brother. Once I kill you, I'll be transformed, freed from this wretched clan's destiny! Any idea of limits of capacity will be shattered forever! You and I are each other's spare! That is the bond between all Uchiha brothers!"

Sasuke took a deep breath and reached up to remove the bandage from around his head. He then threw his cloak aside. He had known his brother was messed up, but the depths of his insanity were a surprise.

"I take it," Itachi said, calm once again, "you saw my true self clearly."

"It was all for this, huh?" Sasuke said, half angry and half sad. "It's time to end this, once and for all."

"Perhaps you have seen my death with your eyes, but I have the Mangekyou Sharingan and you do not." Itachi slipped his left arm back into its sleeve. "You don't stand a chance. You will never obtain your dreams."

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The fight began, with Sasuke and Itachi throwing weapons and punches as they utilized ninjutsu and taijutsu to get the upper hand. After a few minutes Sasuke was thrown up against the wall, unable to move. Itachi grabbed his brothers left arm and held it over his head as he reached into the teen's eye socket and removed his eye. Itachi's dispassionate face watched as Sasuke cried out in pain and clutched his empty eye socket with his free hand. Blood dripped from the open wound, streaming down his cheek it pooled at his chin and dripped onto the floor.

"I warned you." Itachi said calmly, "Without the Mangekyou Sharingan you don't stand a chance against me." Itachi smirked.

Panting in pain, Sasuke pulled his hand away from his face and stared at the blood in his hand.

"Now for the other one." Itachi said firmly.

Sasuke glared at his brother and activated his cursed seal, level two. A wing, shaped remarkably like a giant human hand, sprouted from his right shoulder and pushed Itachi away. However, the elder brother was able to compose himself quickly and he pulled out a small glass jar. Slipping the eyeball, still in its Sharingan form, into the jar he re-sealed it.

"This is the gap between our power, and between our eyes." As Itachi spoke Sasuke felt an arm wrap around his throat. He saw that the "Itachi" he had knocked away from him was still standing a few feet away watching as the other "Itachi" held him motionless. The "free" Itachi walked up to him and moved his hand closer to Sasuke's remaining eye.

Sasuke's cursed seal spread across his face and into his eye. With determination he looked closely into himself and at his brother. He pushed chakra into eyes and the scene before him broke into a hundred pieces.

Collapsing onto the ground Sasuke grasped at his face then removed his hand. There was no blood. His eyes were still intact, and Itachi was still standing across the room.

"You broke my Tsukuyomi." Itachi spoke so that his voice registered surprise, but inside he was very pleased. No one had ever done that before. Sasuke was truly, very powerful. He had dropped onto the ground when the Genjutsu had been dispelled and he sat still, holding his head in his hands. There was one other side-effect to using the advanced eye jutsu that he hadn't mentioned to Sasuke – a pain so intense that it felt like his eyes were exploding over and over.

"I told you, you can use your eyes on me over and over, but my hatred for you will turn my dream into reality." Sasuke gazed intently at his brother.

"Humph." Itachi collected himself and slowly rose, "Make an illusion real? Fair enough. Then I will say the same thing to you. During my Tsukuyomi you saw an illusion of me ripping your eyes out of their sockets. I will make that dream a reality."

Itachi placed his hands in front of him in a hand sign and closed his left eye. Sasuke countered by using a seal on his arm to materialize two giant Fuuma shurikens and throwing them at his brother; the Shadow Shuriken technique made the two shurikens fly through the air in complete tandem. The one four feet above the ground was perfectly mirrored by its "shadow" that hovered only six inches off the ground. Itachi was interrupted and had to abandon his jutsu as he jumped and twisted his body, neatly gliding between the two shurikens.

Sasuke, in the meantime, used his Raikiri to attach strings to the shurikens. As Itachi cleared the giant weapons Sasuke pulled his arm back. He looked back in shock as he saw the blades of the shurikens shoot away from the weapon and head in his direction. Itachi jumped up again, but this time one of the blades plunged into his thigh. He dropped to the ground.

'My last shuriken attack… but at least I finally got him.' Sasuke thought to himself as he snapped the strings from the seal on his wrist.

Itachi contorted his face in pain as he pulled the blade out of his leg. He could feel his stamina dropping and he was beginning to sweat. 'I should have been able to dodge that. If only…' Itachi berated himself. He looked up at his brother and saw that his vision was getting much worse. Not only was everything gray and blurry, but now he was seeing double. Squinting, he covered one eye and the double vision temporarily stopped. Still, he knew he wouldn't he able to continue for much longer.

"Tsukuyomi causing side effects, huh? Ha! Does it feel good?" Sasuke taunted his brother. He launched a fireball jutsu at Itachi, who jumped away, narrowly missing it. Sasuke formed another Raikiri and jumped at his brother. Itachi was blown through the ceiling and landed on the roof. He quickly sent another fireball at Sasuke as the teen jumped through the hole to follow him. Using his wing to protect himself he stood fast as the flames passed over him.

The two brothers sent one more fireball at each other. The two flames met in the middle of the roof and combined into one giant explosion. Sasuke pushed more chakra into his fireball and pushed it to within a few feet of his older brother. The searing heat was ignored as each combatant focused on their attack.

Itachi allowed the flames to come closer as he closed his left eye again and concentrated. Blood began to drip out of the corners. "Amaterasu." He said quietly and his bloodshot eye opened wide, sending black flames at his brother and consuming the fireballs.

Sasuke continued to pour chakra into his fireball as he watched the black flames approaching him, but quickly pulled back when he saw it was having no effect on them.

Wincing in pain, Itachi closed his eye. The blood was flowing freely in two thin streams from each corner. He looked up and saw Sasuke rushing at him again. He opened his eye and shot out another Amaterasu. Sasuke reversed direction to run away from the flames. The blood flowing from his blood-shot eye was heavy and the pain growing more intense by the second, but Itachi kept the jutsu going.

Sasuke collapsed to the ground as the flame engulfed his wing. He screamed as the appendage was burned away. Itachi stopped the jutsu and then approached his brother. However, when he reached him he saw that the teen had broken a hole in the roof and fallen back into the throne room below. Itachi fell to his knees and grabbed his eye. Sweating profusely, he broke out in a coughing fit. His lungs felt like they were on fire as he struggled to get control of himself again. Looking up he felt the blood sticking to the sides of his chin. He didn't feel like wiping it away as he panted, trying to catch his breath.

Looking back down at the roof, Itachi reacted with shock as he felt a massive amount of chakra beneath him. Sasuke had launched a "Fire Element Grand Dragon Fire" jutsu at him. Itachi rolled away, then jumped to his feet. Keeping his still-bleeding eye closed, Itachi jumped away from the roof as it crumbled with the force of the impact. Two dragon shaped fireballs broke through the roof and disappeared into the sky. Itachi was unable to escape in time and his right arm was caught in the flame.

Itachi made it to safety, perching on the edge of the remaining roof he looked down at Sasuke as he patted his arm to extinguish the flames. Opening his sore eye he realized his vision had gone black. He could no longer see out of his right eye. He touched it gingerly and felt the blood and swelling that surrounded it.

Sasuke looked up and sneered, "I see that second Amaterasu took a lot out of you." He could see that his brother's right eye consisted of only a small pupil. The Sharingan was forever gone. He knelt down on the ground, his thoughts turning grim, 'But I'm about spent as well. This will probably be my final jutsu.'

Itachi stared down at his brother, "Remember the Sharingan can see chakra. Drop the act; I already know you're out of it. The clone you used to dodge my Amaterasu was a move straight from Orochimaru's repertoire. Although difficult to detect, it used a massive amount of chakra."

"I won't deny that I'm out of chakra. I used everything I had left for that fire technique." Sasuke admitted. "But… don't tell me you think I came here to kill you without preparing first. It'll be over very quickly. This last technique is like Amaterasu… impossible to avoid. It's time to reproduce what I saw earlier. The vision of your death."

Rain started to fall from the storm clouds that had suddenly appeared. Dark and ominous, they roiled around the heavens, too close to the earth to be called natural. Itachi, who was still kneeling, looked up in surprise. Sasuke had not aimed those fireballs at him, but at the atmosphere. Creating a rapidly uprising current in order to generate thunder clouds. It was pure genius, Itachi admitted to himself. The teen was taking nature manipulation one step further and instead of using his own chakra to generate a lightening element jutsu he was going to channel an enormous surge from the sky.

'Sasuke, you are every bit as powerful as I thought you would be.' Itachi said to himself. 'But we aren't done yet.'

Sasuke jumped back onto the roof and onto one of the tall rock walls that rose up from the roof. Looking down he could see the Amaterasu flames that still burned around the Hideout. The rain didn't affect them at all. 'The heat rising up from the flames is also heating the atmosphere. This will make things a whole lot easier.' Sasuke thought.

Lightening and thunder burst from the sky, seemingly at random. The noise and bright light made the scene ominous and oppressive. "This jutsu's power source is lightning from heaven itself. All I have to do is guide it straight through your skull. I call this technique 'Kirin'." He referred to a mythical unicorn like animal that was wise and would punished evil. It seemed like an apt name, considering the person he had developed it to use it on.

Sasuke held his hands in front of him, channeling the lightening through them he quickly took control of it. The thunder grew louder and more frequent as a hundred bursts of lightening discharged continuously. Itachi closed his blind eye and funneled chakra into his left eye as he looked up at the sky. All the lightening bolts were combining into a large "Chidori" like monster with massive fangs and angry eyes. It hovered in the sky glaring down as thunder boomed and electricity crackled. It was truly as if the mythical Kirin had descended to earth to ravage all evil from the land.

"Disappear with the thunder…" Sasuke said plainly as he moved his hand around to control the monster. It dipped down and plunged directly into the center of the fortress. A huge explosion was the result as the walls of the top floor of the ancient Hideout were blown outward in a massive white flash.

Sasuke climbed through the rubble and eventually found his brother a few minutes later. Itachi was lying on his stomach, face down on the ground. He was no longer wearing his Akatsuki cloak, revealing his black yukata and pants. His waist length ponytail was splayed out across his back.

"It's all over." Sasuke said as his eyes returned to normal. He dropped down to his knees and sighed, then yelled, "I did it!" The rain continued to fall and sound of it hitting the broken stone walls was loud.

"Was that what you saw… in your vision of my death?" The words brought Sasuke back to reality as he watched Itachi struggle to stand up. On his hands and knees his head was facing the ground as he coughed and spit up more blood.

Sasuke instantly activated his cursed seal again, "God damn you!" He screamed. He could see something… it was almost invisible… surrounding Itachi. It appeared to be a giant skeleton of some sort.

"If I hadn't used this, I would've been obliterated." He stood up and looked straight ahead. Both his eyes were now blinded, with no evidence of the Sharingan visible. "Sasuke, you have become strong… very strong." Pausing again, he breathed heavily, as if trying to catch his breath. His stance was precarious and he felt a twinge of vertigo, but with the use of his tremendous willpower he manager to stand without trembling. "Behold… the last weapon in my arsenal… 'Susano'."

Sasuke was beginning to pant heavily. Keeping his cursed seal form without any chakra was difficult and taking a huge toll on his stamina. "Su…Susano?"

"The third and final technique, along with Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu that awoke within these eyes on that fateful day. Sasuke, are you finally out of techniques? If you've got any more moves up your sleeve, I suggest you stop trying to save them. The true fight begins now."

The clouds broke as the rain stopped and yellow beams of sunlight filtered onto the ground. Itachi could feel the heat and realized that his brother's Kirin jutsu could only be used once. He manipulated the Susano surrounding him and a head appeared in place of the skeleton. Large, with huge canine teeth and a fifteen foot pointed nose that looked more like a horn it practically flowed with chakra as the edges gave the impression of a flame.

Sasuke doubled over in pain as his cursed seal state started to take its toll.

"_I can give you what you want."_ The voice echoed in Sasuke's mind and he cringed, "_Shall I lend you my power?"_

"Shit… no!" Sasuke said desperately.

"_Admit it, young Sasuke, you need me."_ The even, calm voice tried to assure the teen of its good intentions.

Sasuke fell to the ground and sat on his legs. He wrapped his arms around his shoulders, trying to keep himself under control. He couldn't let _him_ out, no matter what.

"_You do want your revenge on Itachi, don't you?" _

Sasuke banged his hands down on the ground trying to hold on to his consciousness.

"_Come… Unleash me… And your wish will be granted."_

Sasuke fell forward in pain and screamed as a large white snake with about a dozen heads erupted from his back.

Itachi couldn't see what was going on, but he could hear and his chakra could sense other chakras. And this one… "I know this feeling… Orochimaru's Hydra technique." He realized that his little brother no longer had enough chakra to contain the snake man, thus allowing him to escape.

Stepping forward, Itachi subconsciously ordered Susano to strike the Hydra. A massive blade appeared in its hand and it swung across the area, decapitating all the heads. As they fell to the ground, one last head rose up from the ground and opened its mouth.

"You finally show yourself." Itachi said angrily.

Inside of the snake's mouth Orochimaru's torso appeared. Laughing triumphantly he stopped just long enough to spit up his Kusanagi sword then gazed down at Itachi. "Here and now! The chance I've been waiting for has finally come. And it's all thanks to you for forcing young Sasuke to expend too much chakra. The same chakra that he had been using to suppress me." He raised his voice and yelled, "I'll take his body for my own and defeat…"

Itachi didn't wait for Orochimaru to finish talking before he had Susano spear the man, killing him instantly. "All right, little brother. Anything else?" He grinned, in spite of the blood that continued to leak out of his eye and mouth and the fever that was causing him to sweat profusely.

"Humph, you don't seriously think a little cut like this would be enough to kill me, do you?" Orochimaru's grin quickly faded in shock as he felt his chakra being sucked from him. "Th…this… it's not possible…the sword of Totsuka? Itachi… you…you had it all along?" Orochimaru screamed as his soul was ripped out of him and sucked into an eternal Genjutsu within the katana. He had searched for it for years, but never found it. The katana was said to carry sealing powers, able to seal anything it pierced in a blissful dream-like Genjutsu for all eternity. The ultimate counter to the word of Kusanagi, it had no real physical form. Meaning the only way Itachi could wield it was through Susano.

As the last snake dissipated and Orochimaru disappeared Sasuke returned to his normal body. All vestiges of the cursed seal were now gone. Itachi stared straight ahead at where he knew his brother to be, "End of the line, Sasuke."

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A small white snake slithered through the fallen stone walls, trying to find a way out as Sasuke and Itachi struggled to maintain their composure. Sasuke was kneeling on the ground, breathing heavily he knew he had no more attacks left. However, standing before him was his elder brother, in the middle of the most powerful and invincible jutsu he had ever seen. However, it suddenly wavered and Sasuke looked up sensing a possible opening.

Itachi, who was also breathing heavily suddenly grasped his stomach and started coughing. Bending over he fought to control his breathing. After a couple minutes he stood up straight again. "Your eyes belong to me now. I'll take them slowly… I want to saver this."

Taking a step forward, he suddenly stopped at grabbed at his chest as a sudden, overwhelming combination of pain and pressure settled over his heart and left arm.

'No!' He said to himself, then bent forward again and coughed roughly. Blood spurted out of his mouth and he covered it with his hand as he dropped to the ground. He could feel the blood getting caught in his lungs and realized he had also been swallowing a lot of it too. 'Just a little bit longer… please… just a little bit longer.' He tried to move his left arm, but it was very painful and heavy, his hand was tingling. 'It's a heart attack, I don't have much longer, please just give me a few more minutes.' He pleaded with his body to cooperate at the same time he cursed it for falling apart.

Susano started to loose its corporeal form, reverting back to a skeleton. Sasuke saw his chance and threw a shuriken at his brother. However, Itachi had recovered enough to stand up again. Susano was re-fortified and the shuriken glanced off the barrier. He looked at Itachi's face and was horrified at what he saw. The man's face was covered in blood and sweat, his eyes all white with small black pricks where the pupils should be. Even if this was his enemy, it was still not something he wanted to see.

With great difficulty Sasuke stood up and pulled out a scroll. It contained a shuriken with several exploding tags. He threw it, with the same result as before. It glanced off the barrier without reaching Itachi. Sasuke watched as Itachi staggered backwards a couple times, as if trying to maintain his balance. Blood was dripping freely from his mouth. The man finally started to walk forward.

'Yata's Mirror will protect me.' Itachi said to himself, 'It turns back any attack, and when it is combined with the sword of Totsuka I'm invincible.' He lifted his right hand and pointed it towards Sasuke. Blood dripped freely from his fingers.

"My eyes… my…" Itachi gasped out as he walked slowly towards the source of his brother's diminished chakra.

Sasuke pulled out his katana and launched himself in the air at Susano, but bounced off. His sword was sent flying and landed several feet away. Landing on his back, he quickly fought to stand up as Itachi continued to close in on him. Terror welled up inside as he realized he had no more defenses. He wouldn't be able to stop Itachi from taking his eyes. He finally made it to his feet and backed up, but his retreat was stopped by a cement wall.

'You can do it. Just a little further.' The voice in Itachi's head gave him courage, but at the same time surprised him. It was Shisui. How could that be possible? 'Sasuke is our last chance. Just a little further, cousin, then we can be together again. I said I would wait for you, remember? I am your eyes. And now, I'll help.' Itachi felt a small, very small surge of energy and the pain in his chest lessened slightly.

He lifted his hands towards Sasuke's eyes and stepped closer. He opened his mouth in a sigh as a flood of memories suddenly overwhelmed him.

Sasuke as a baby…

"_It's okay, Itachi, you can touch him. You have to be gentle for a couple years, though." Mikoto smiled at her son's sudden shyness. He lowered his hand and stroked the baby's cheek, then touched his hair. _

"_So soft." Itachi said in a low voice._

He used to find comfort in visiting his younger brother after having nightmares…

_Itachi knew he shouldn't be here at this time of the night, but he wanted to see his little brother. His mother said he had saved his life and was responsible for him now. He wanted to take that seriously. But he should be outside training. Or in bed asleep. But the nightmare kept returning. The one with the bloody sword. Before Sasuke was born he was afraid of being alone in the dream. Now, he was afraid of Sasuke crying. What was going on? He was really tired. The dream had been coming at least twice a week for the last month, and even when he didn't have it he still woke up with the need to check on his little brother._

"_Itachi." He heard his father's voice and jumped up from where he was leaning on the crib rail, half asleep. "Are you having nightmares? This is the fourth time this week I've seen you in here."_

_He thought about lying. But… "Yes. It is the same one over and over, and Sasuke is crying and wakes me up." He looked at the floor. "Do dreams come true?" He looked his father in the eye._

"_Some believe the Sharingan has precognitive abilities, son, but it doesn't. Our dreams mirror our souls and show us our repressed emotions or strongest fears or desires. It is our own conscious acts that make them come true." Fugaku knew what nightmares were. "I also had a nightmare tonight. That is why I am awake. But I won't let it happen, so it won't come true. Do you understand that?" Perhaps it was a little abstract for a kid._

"_Yes, I do understand. I want Sasuke to be strong. No matter what, he must be able to defend himself. That way, he won't ever cry." Itachi walked past Fugaku, who stood aside to let him pass._

His broken promises…

_Itachi amused his brother on the return trip by jumping up into the trees and leaping through the branches for a while before returning to the road. He enjoyed being with Sasuke, it made him forget about how complicated his life had become. His younger brother had no expectations placed on him, other than attending the Academy and becoming a ninja. He did not have to endure brutal training sessions with their father, or long, threatening lectures from the elders, or divided loyalties from Madara. He was free to be a five-year-old boy. 'And I want to keep it that way.' Itachi thought to himself. _

'_As long as I live up to everyone's expectations they will leave Sasuke alone. I will work as hard as that requires. I will not expose my brother to my life.' The words echoed in his mind and set a new resolve. _

So many broken promises…

_Shisui was silent for a minute as he took several deep breaths to calm himself. "In two months you and I will meet at the Nakano river. I will die by your hand and then you will take my power. Then, you will kill Fugaku."_

He was supposed to have killed a few people, not all of them… He hadn't even been able to protect his girlfriend…

_Fumitake had to smile despite his bad mood. "I apologize for my outburst. I have protected my sisters and mother for so long that it is hard to accept my current weakness. But you…" He reached out his hand, beckoning for Itachi to come closer. "You will make a fine protector for Sheeta, won't you?"_

_Itachi looked at a confused Sheeta. "Of course I would protect her."_

So many…

_Fugaku bowed his head. "Are you now working alongside Madara?"_

"_No. I will never do that. I will kill him." Itachi swore. _

…broken promises

"_Big brother," Sasuke said hesitantly, "could you… help me with my Shuriken jutsu tonight?"_

"_I'm busy, why don't you ask father?" Itachi said hastily._

"_You're better at it. Even I can see that." Sasuke sulked._

_Itachi waved his brother over and Sasuke walked closer. Reaching out his hand he tapped the boy on the forehead with his fingers. _

"_Maybe next time, Sasuke." He turned around and looked at the floor. Sasuke saw the dark circles under his eyes, but didn't think twice about it._

_Standing up Itachi started walking out the door, "I don't have time for this now."_

Itachi smiled and placed his first two fingers on his little brother's forehead, "Forgive me, Sasuke, there won't be a next time." And with the last of his chakra pushed Amaterasu into Sasuke's eye as he dragged his fingers down the teen's face and onto his neck. Susano was dispelled and Itachi fell forward, hitting his head against the rock wall. It was the last of his fail-safe's, designed to automatically cast an Amaterasu jutsu when the teen saw Madara's Sharingan. With any luck it would kill him. However, Itachi estimated it probably had a twenty percent chance of succeeding. Naruto was the fail-safe he was sure had a hundred percent chance of succeeding. He would be the one that would bring Sasuke back should he try to walk down the wrong path.

'You did it, Itachi. You… can join us now.' Shisui's voice had a calming effect as Itachi felt his heart flutter and his left arm go numb. He dropped to his knees. 'Everyone is here.'

'Are you real?' Itachi asked, 'Is it really okay that I didn't kill Madara?'

'Sasuke will kill him. That is the legacy you have passed on. Trust him and let yourself rest.' Shisui said calmly, 'You deserve it, Itachi. Just let go and come with me. They are waiting.'

Itachi could feel his heart stop and all sound disappeared as he fell back onto the ground. He wished he could have seen his brother clearly one last time. He wished he could have killed Madara. He wished he could have seen through the plots and counter-plots that led to the Uchiha rebellion and massacre. He wished he could have married Sheeta and grown old with her. He wished he could have done more.

But his final wish was the one closest to his heart and his last sentient thought, 'Let me be reincarnated as Sasuke's son so we can be together again.'

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Madara looked down at the corpse of his former student. It had been only two hours since the fight had ended. He had retrieved Sasuke and Itachi, bringing them to a cave. Sasuke was asleep, and probably would remain so for a few more hours. Itachi, however, was not sleeping. He was dead.

While the relief that flooded through him at the news was real, so was the grief. He stroked Itachi's hair and sighed. The young man's life had been nothing short of tragic. A constant fight to stay alive, to protect those important to him. And for some reason, somewhere along the line, "protecting" had translated into "killing".

Madara felt something on his face and reached up to touch it. A tear. Was it possible? He had not shed any tears since the death his younger brother. But for Itachi… "I will tell your brother what you have done for him. Your silence is a punishment you decided on for yourself, but you do not deserve it. He will come to love you again. Brothers should never hate each other."

Stroking the man's cheek lightly, he applied chakra to his hand and placed it over Itachi's eye. Very gently, as if afraid the young man would awaken; he removed the organ and placed it into a jar with a special preserving liquid. He carefully removed the second eye as well. He then removed the tattered clothing and used a damp cloth to wipe the blood and dirt away from his body, then arranged his hair so it was neat. He covered the torso with a clean, white sheet. Pulling out a couple fake eyeballs he inserted them into the empty eye sockets and pulled the lids over them. Sasuke would no doubt want to see his brother one last time, and it would please the boy to see that his corpse had been taken care of. And, he had to admit, it made him feel better as well.

Madara took one last look at Itachi and turned around to leave the room. "Your death opens up a lot of new doors for me, Itachi. But it closes the one I had hoped you would one day walk through. The one that led to me, that brought you around to my way of thinking. I had hoped we could walk together, and restore the Uchiha to glory. But… you were the wrong person for the job. However…" He smiled as he slipped his mask back on. "Sasuke, no doubt, is the right person. Thank-you for bringing him to me."

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**Please review if you can, and watch next week for the first chapter of the AU sequel.**


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